In this section:
Introduction .............................................................................. 6-1
Equipment required .................................................................. 6-1
Device connections .................................................................. 6-2
Setting up measurements in the Clarius software .................... 6-4
Introduction
This example shows how to use a 4200-SMU or 4210-SMU instrument to perform a forward-biased
voltage sweep on a solar cell in a 4-wire configuration. Current is measured on each step of the
sweep and an I-V graph is generated from the collected data. The Formulator calculates common
electrical characteristics of the cell.
These instructions show you how to make connections from the SMU to the solar cell and how to add
the forward bias I-V test into a new project and automate the measurements.
From the I-V characteristics measured by the 4200A-SCS, you can determine important parameters
about the solar cell, including:
Maximum current (I
max
) and voltage (V
max
)
Maximum power (P
max
)
Open-circuit voltage (V
oc
)
Short-circuit current (I
sc
)
Equipment required
One 4200A-SCS with one 4200-SMU or one 4210-SMU
Four triaxial cables (4200-TRX-2 or 4200-MTRX-2)
One solar cell
One light source
Section 6
Make I-V measurements on a solar cell
