Solar Cell Experiment :: Papers

Solar Cell Experiment Introduction: Solar Cells convert light energy to electrical energy, so are transducers. Aim 1: To investigate any relationship present between the distance between a solar cell and a lamp, and the current output of the solar cell, at a fixed voltage. Aim 2: To investigate any relationship present between the power supplied to a bulb, and the current of a solar panel, at a fixed distance apart. When investigating a solar cell, there are several variables we could investigate. Below, I have analysed all the variables that could be investigated, and evaluated which one I will investigate. When considering what variables of the light I could investigate, several things come to mind. Variable 1: Light Light has different colours, and different coloured lights are known to have different frequencies. This in turn would cause the different coloured lights to emit different levels of power. We know that this is the case because when combining the two below formulae, we can see that energy and frenquency are related. Wavelength x Frequency= Wave Speed Planck's Constant x frequency= Energy The second formula states that frequency is directly proportional to energy. When rearranging the first formula to display frequency as the subject of the formula, and then substituting the value for frenquency given (wave speed/wavelength) into the second formula, we get: Planck 's constant x wavespeed/wavelength= energy Using this formula, we can find out what kinds of light give out the most energy. As all light travels at the same speed (300,000 m/s), we know that the wavelength of the light will determine how much energy is given out from the light. The wavelength and frequency are directly related in light, because both multiplied must give a product of 300,000 m/s. We can gather by the formula that lights with a smaller wavelength will give out more energy, because when a smaller number is divided by the wavespeed and multiplied by the constant, a higher value for the