Concentrating solar collector with solid optical element

Abstract

A Cassegrain-type concentrating solar collector cell includes primary and secondary mirrors disposed on opposing convex and concave surfaces of a light-transparent (e.g., glass) optical element. Light enters an aperture surrounding the secondary mirror, and is reflected by the primary mirror toward the secondary mirror, which re-reflects the light onto a photovoltaic cell mounted on a central region surrounded by the convex surface. The primary and secondary mirrors are preferably formed as mirror films that are deposited or plated directly onto the optical element. A concentrating solar collector array includes a sheet-like optical panel including multiple optical elements arranged in rows. The photovoltaic cells are mounted directly onto the optical panel, and the primary mirrors of the individual collector cells include metal film segments that are coupled by the photovoltaic cells to facilitate transmission of the generated electrical energy. Bypass diodes are connected in parallel with the photovoltaic cells.

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.