
299© 2008 Taylor & Francis Group, LLC
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Photovoltaics*
We do not inherit the earth from our ancestors, we borrow it from our children.
—Chief Seattle
Photovoltaic conversion is the direct conversion of sunlight into electricity with no inter-
vening heat engine. Photovoltaic devices are solid-state devices; therefore, they are rugged
and simple in design and require very little maintenance. Perhaps, the biggest advantage
of solar photovoltaic devices is that they can be constructed as stand-alone systems to give
outputs from microwatts to megawatts. That is why they have been used as the power
sources for calculators, watches, water pumping, remote ...