What is a solar panel? A solar panel is a way to collect the sun’s energy and convert it into electrical energy that we can use. Solar panels are everywhere. There are little two-inch ones on top of my garden lighting. There are two- to three-foot solar panels on parking lot lights and highway department message boards as well as the well-known roof-mounted solar panels that can power a whole house.
A solar panel energy system consists of the solar panel, a converter, and storage batteries. The solar panels collect the sun’s rays and convert them into direct current (DC) electricity. This current runs to the converter where the current is converted into the type of electricity our buildings and appliances use which is alternating current (AC). The alternating current then goes to directly power electrical items or into the storage batteries for later use.
Solar panels are made from some type of semiconductor material that has historically been sandwiched under glass and made of silicon. Today there is technology called “thin-film” technology that allows solar panels to be rolled up into a tube. There are also semiconductors made of carbon and technology that allows semiconductor material to be printed or painted directly onto surfaces. Regardless of what form they come in, all solar panels work in basically the same way.
If you start looking for solar panels, you will see them everywhere. They power billboards and the companies that advertise their product on them, homes and the garden gnomes that decorate its garden. They supply power on islands, yachts, and RVs. They probably power the calculator you use, can recharge your iPod, and will someday keep your cell phone juiced.
Because of the new technology available, solar “panels” are often misnamed. Solar panels are only one type of photovoltaic technology. There are solar roof tiles and shingles, solar film, and solar ink and paint. But many people refer to all photovoltaic technology as “solar panels” whether they are talking about a whole solar power system, or photovoltaic shingles on a roof.
So, what is a solar panel? A solar panel is an environmentally-friendly way to take power with you wherever you go and also have free power for decades in your home.
