In this updated edition of Solar Cells and Their Applications, feed-in tariffs are identified as the most effective approach for public policy. Reasons are provided to explain why pin solar cells outperform more traditional pn solar cells. Field test data are reported for nineteen percent pin solar cells and for ~500X concentrating systems with bare cell efficiencies approaching forty percent. Paths to bare cell efficiencies over fifty percent are described, and key missing program elements are identified. Since government support is needed for new technology prototype integration and qualification testing before manufacturing scale up, the key economic measure is identified in this volume as the electricity cost in cents per kilowatt-hour at the complete installed system level, rather than just the up-front solar cell modules’ costs in dollars per watt.
For this technical, 550+-page book, I was given one month to write and edit the index. In addition to providing the client a well-written index, I gave the client a document of errors that I noticed while writing the index. This allowed the client to have a light proofread of the manuscript free of charge, which furthered the near perfection of this product.