Design and Analysis of Various Solar Cell Technologies for Improvements in Efficiencies

Solar cells have undergone massive evolution since the development of first commercial solar cell by Bell laboratories in 1954. Its chronological journey includes crystalline silicon solar cells of first generation followed by thin film solar cells of second generation to perovskite solar cells of latest third generation technology. Among these, Silicon based solar cells of first generation have been highly commercialized due to its durability and cost effectiveness. However, their efficiencies are major concern which have been constrained to 27% till date since their origin. On the contrary, perovskite solar cells of third generation have undergone outstanding transformation in just 12 years with rapid increases in certified efficiency, from 3.8% in 2009 to 25.6% till date. However, stability is major problem with these cells, which makes these cells poor contender for commercialization. Nevertheless, researchers are optimistic to enhance performance and prolonged stability of these cells in forthcoming years as perovskite layers are quite easy to develop in laboratory by mixing various salt solutions together to form a thin film. Currently, photovoltaics is widely used in space, telecommunications, remote power, cathodic protection and other day to day usage. The current maximum global capacity of solar energy is 592 GW, contributing nearly 2.5% to global electricity generation. Objective of this paper is to review development of solar cells since its origin, with comprehensive description of manufacturing processes, costs, implementations and power conversion efficiencies of solar cells of various generations including their future trends and aspects.