A Multifunctional Anti-reflection Coating for Space Solar Coverglass

Solar photovoltaic (PV) cells are used to power satellites in space, and incorporate ultra-thin, radiation tolerant coverglass sheets to provide protection and mechanical support. Coatings can be applied to this coverglass surface to reduce reflection losses. The coatings can also provide passive cooling, to reduce cell operating temperatures in the space environment. This work details the design and development of a multifunctional coating, comprising metal-oxide dielectrics, to provide anti-reflection across the spectral response region of a GaAs solar cell, allowing increased power output, as well as infra-red reflection to provide passive cooling.. The passive cooling effect will be enhanced by the high emissivity of the coating. In addition , the use of SiO<inf xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink">2</inf> as the outer layer also provides radiation resistance, protecting the underlying cell and extending mission lifetimes.