Solar energy improvements were again sought during the Gulf War in the 1990s. William Lord We still use solar power in the same two forms today, thermal and photovoltaic. Electricity is generated when the heated fluid drives turbines or other machinery. The second form of solar power produces electricity directly without moving parts. Today's photovoltaic system is composed of cells made of silicon, the second most abundant element in the earth's crust.
Power is produced when sunlight strikes the semiconductor material and creates an electric current.
The smallest unit of the system is a cell. Cells wired together form a module, and modules wired together form a panel. A group of panels is called an array, and several arrays form an array field. It is especially unique because no large-scale installation is required. Remote areas can easily produce their own supply of electricity by constructing as small or as large of a system as needed.