Integrated Encapsulation of Flexible Solar Array by Pseudomorphic Glass for High Efficiency and High Reliability Space Photovoltaic Application

Abstract

Solar arrays, as the primary energy source for spacecraft, should possess technical capabilities of lightweight, high-power, and exceptional reliability to fulfill the requirements of future space applications. Benefiting from the high transmittance, flexibility, and adjustable capabilities of Pseudomorphic Glass (PMG), along with high-efficiency thin-film III–V solar cells, large-area encapsulation high-efficiency flexible solar array has been achieved on fiber-reinforced polyimide. Here, we provide a fast and low-cost integrated flexible encapsulation strategy to design flexible arrays for different service orbits by reducing the solar array mass and launch cost. Firstly, the arrangement direction and interconnected solar cells in flexible arrays were designed, and the reliability was verified by experiments. The results show that optimizing the arrangement of solar cells can significantly reduce the potential risk of solar cell cracks when the flexible array is rolled. Next, a flexible array with an area of 0.12 m² was prepared using PMG and flexible III–V solar cells. Its specific power and area density reached 400 W/kg and 0.65 kg/m², respectively. The flexible array was subjected to a series of space assessment experiments, including ultraviolet radiation, atomic oxygen erosion, charged particle irradiation and thermal cycling. The results illustrated that the flexible array showed excellent stability and reliability under the abovementioned space environment factors. Finally, the flexible array was optimized for typical spacecraft service orbits (low earth orbit and geosynchronous orbit), reducing weight by 56.7% and 39.4%, respectively compared with rigid panels. The proposed flexible array has excellent space application potential and provides a new path for powering high-power spacecraft and large-space facilities.