Setup development for spectral response measurement on multijunction solar cells

Abstract

This work presents the development of a facility to measure spectral response on III-V solar cells for space applications. This development was performed in the frame of a cooperation agreement between the Argentine National Atomic Energy Commission (CNEA) and the Argentine National Commission for Space Activities (CONAE), which is addressed in these first stages to SAOCOM and SAC-D satellites. The setup is particularly oriented to measure triple junction (TJ) InGaP/GaAs/Ge cells, the same type that will be used in the next CONAE satellites solar arrays, but it can be utilized to measure other devices. The equipment is based on narrowband interference filters and two dichroic lamps as bias light source to select the subcell to be measured, whereas a simple incandescent lamp is used to generate the monochromatic light beam. Signal is measured on an appropriate resistance inserted in a serial circuit using a lock-in amplifier. Measurement is fully automated, which allows operator independent results. Preliminary results show the good performance of this setup.