Publication date: 19th April 2024
The solar array is one of the most exposed subsystem on the satellite. It is subject to severe environmental loads. Temperature variations in excess of 200 K occur, due to the fact that during eclipse phases the radiative balance between frontside solar flux and rearside emission into space is disturbed. Charged particles, mainly electrons and protons, trapped in the earth magnetic field or originating from the sun directly, produce non-ionizing damage and consequently carrier lifetime degradation in the cell as well as ionizing damage in all shielding materials. Short wavelength UV light is of concern for the transparency of all optical materials. The interaction with space plasma results in charging and the risk of damage due to electrostatic discharge effects. Lastly the mechanical loads experienced during launch and deployment are of key concern for the structural integrity of the solar array.
These environmental boundary conditions will be reviewed in detail, together with an explanation how they are managed in the existing state of the art solar array design, which consist of rigid carbon fiber sandwich panels combined with 30% efficient III-V multijunction cells. This then sets the stage for a review of the current challenges for solar array design. The move from individual high value satellites to large constellations of low-cost satellites puts a strong focus on arrays with a decreased cost. To enable this, new deployable structures, able to provide deployed surface are in space at a lower cost, combined with terrestrial solar cell are the only viable pathway. Thin-film solar cells will have some unique advantages that could be exploited in this context. Areas of development focus are suggested, both for the cells as well as for the photovoltaic assembly of cells integrated into a photovoltaic blanket.
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