Optimum Monochromatic Wavelengths for Solar Panel Testing and Conversion of Parameters to STC

Solar panels are one of the simplest devices to produce electricity from the sun. Even though the efficiency with which it harnesses energy from the sun is very less, its affordability and ease of use makes it a strong competitor in the renewable energy filed. The laboratory testing apparatus for these solar panels still makes use of halogen lamps for testing purposes. These equipments are costly, requires much electricity and the life expectancy is very less. Light Emitting Diode (LED) solar simulators are considered as the future of solar simulators due to their low cost and robustness. This work presents the various performance based experiments, viz., wavelength based, time based and irradiance based conducted on monocrystalline solar panels using LEDs of different wavelengths. The paper proposes suitable wavelengths for the testing purposes of solar panels in the light of obtained results. The mathematical conversion of electrical parameters like short circuit current and open circuit voltage to Standard Test Conditions (STC) are also done in this work.