impurities

Silicon is commonly used to make solar cells due to its special chemical properties. A silicon atom has 14 electrons that are arranged in three different shells.

The first two shells which have two and eight electrons each are completely full. However, the outer shell is only half full as it only has four electrons. Thus a silicon atom is always on a look out for ways to fill up its last shell.

In order to do this, it will have to share electrons with four nearby atoms to gain stability. It is just as if each atom has joined four hands to four neighbors. This is what forms the crystalline structure, leading to the formation of a PV cell.

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Tagged as: bond, conductor, crystalline, electrons, energy, heat, impurities, N-type, P-type, protons, PV panels, shells, silicon, Solar cell, solar energy, solar panel, Solar power, solar tiles, sunlight

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