Photovoltaic cells are _______.
- AOption (a)
semiconductor material
- BOption (b)
poor conductor material
- COption (c)
superconductor material
- DOption (d)
conductor material
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Correct answer
semiconductor material
Why this answer is correct
Photovoltaic cells
- A photovoltaic (PV) cell is an energy-harvesting technology, that converts solar energy into useful electricity through a process called the photovoltaic effect.
- The photovoltaic effect is a process that generates a voltage or electric current in a photovoltaic cell when it is exposed to sunlight.
- These solar cells are composed of two different types of semiconductors: a p-type and an n-type which are joined together to create a p-n junction.
- By joining these two types of semiconductors, an electric field is formed in the region of the junction as electrons move to the positive p-side and holes move to the negative n-side.
- This field causes negatively charged particles to move in one direction and positively charged particles in the other direction.
- When the light of a suitable wavelength is incident on these cells, energy from the photon is transferred to an electron of the semiconducting material, causing it to jump to a higher energy state known as the conduction band.
- In their excited state in the conduction band, these electrons are free to move through the material, and it is this motion of the electron that creates an electric current in the cell.