Solar cells have always been aligned closely with other electronic devices. The following pages cover the basic aspects of semiconductor materials and the physical mechanisms which are at the centre of photovoltaic devices. These physical mechanisms are used to explain the operation of a p-n junction, which forms the basis not only of the great majority of solar cells, but also most other electronic devices such as lasers and bipolar junction transistors.

An ingot of silicon, consisting of a single large crystal of silicon. Such an ingot is sliced into individual wafers and then used to make a variety of semiconductor devices, including solar cells and computer chips.