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  4. Reactive self-tracking solar concentrators: concept, design, and initial materials characterization
 
research article

Reactive self-tracking solar concentrators: concept, design, and initial materials characterization

Tremblay, Eric  
•
Baker, Katherine A.
•
Karp, Jason H.
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2012
Applied Optics

Étendue limits angular acceptance of high-concentration photovoltaic systems and imposes precise two-axis mechanical tracking. We show how a planar micro-optic solar concentrator incorporating a waveguide cladding with a nonlinear optical response to sunlight can reduce mechanical tracking requirements. Optical system designs quantify the required response: a large, slow and localized increase in index of refraction. We describe one candidate materials system: a suspension of high index particles in a low index fluid combined with a localized space-charge field to increase particle density and average index. Preliminary experiments demonstrate an index change of aqueous polystyrene nanoparticles in response to a low voltage signal and imply larger responses with optimized nanofluidic materials.

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Type
research article
DOI
10.1364/AO.51.001086
Author(s)
Tremblay, Eric  
Baker, Katherine A.
Karp, Jason H.
Tremblay, Eric J.
Hallas, Justin M.
Ford, Joseph E.
Date Issued

2012

Publisher

Optical Society of America

Published in
Applied Optics
Volume

51

Issue

8

Start page

1086

End page

1094

Subjects

solar concentration

•

self-tracking

•

reactive

•

nanomaterials

•

Photovoltaics

•

Particles

•

Light

Editorial or Peer reviewed

REVIEWED

Written at

EPFL

EPFL units
IMT  
Available on Infoscience
December 22, 2011
Use this identifier to reference this record
https://infoscience.epfl.ch/handle/20.500.14299/75932
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