Solar Arrays

♤ Solar cells are generally very small, and each one may only be capable of generating a few watts of electricity.

♤ They are typically combined into modules of about 40 cells; the modules are in turn assembled into PV arrays up to several meters on a side.

♤ These flat-plate PV arrays can be mounted at a fixed angle facing south, or they can be mounted on a tracking device that follows the sun, allowing them to capture more sunlight.

♤ For utility-scale electricity generating applications, hundreds of arrays are interconnected to form a single, large system.