Study on the application of glass ceramics based on vanadium dioxide as a bypass device in solar cells

Abstract

The work explored the possibility of using glass critical thermistors based on vanadium dioxide to improve reliability and prevent electrothermal overloads in photovoltaic components of solar cells. Glass-ceramic materials based on vanadium dioxide and vanadium phosphate glass V₂O₅-P₂O₅ were used as a thermistor element, which abruptly change the value of electrical resistance by 1.5–2 orders of magnitude at a temperature of about 70 °C. It has been established that the thermistor structures under consideration can function as bypass elements in solar modules. Such elements react directly both to the presence of overvoltage and to temperature increase in individual photovoltaic cells with increased resistance, and thus provide increased reliability of solar array as a whole.