
Solar Power Conversion 30-11
absorb a part of the power produced by the elements of the string. e bypass diode limits the PV ele-
ment
r
everse
v
oltage
a
nd
r
epresents
a
n
a
lternative
w
ay
f
or
t
he
s
tring
c
urrent.
B
ypass
d
iodes
m
ay
b
e
p
laced
i
n
p
arallel
to
e
ach
m
odule,
to
a
s
eries
o
f
m
odules,
o
r
to
a
g
roup
o
f
c
ells,
t
hus
a
voiding
“
hot
s
pots,”
n
amely
t
he
c
ell
b
urnout.
S
uch
d
iodes
m
ust
n
ot
b
e
c
onfused
w
ith
t
he
b
locking
d
iodes,
w
hich
a
re
p
laced
i
n series with a string in order to avoid current backow toward cells.
e
p
resence
o
f
b
ypass
d
iodes
s
moothes
t
he
e
ects
o
f
m
ismatching
b
ecause
t
hey
p
rovide
a
n
a
lter-
native
w
ay
f
or
t
he
h
igh
c
urrent
p
roduced