Solar Cell Technology

Solar cell technology dates back to 1839, when the French physicist Antoine-Cesar Bequerel observed that shining light on an electrode submerged in a conductive solution would create an electric current. Later in 1877, Charles Fritts constructed the first true solar cell by using junctions formed by coating the semiconductor selenium with an ultra thin layer of gold. His devices were very inefficient but they were a start. In 1930, both the selenium cell and the copper oxide cell were being employed in light-sensitive devices. One device was the photometer, used in photography. …