Analytical Description of a Luminescent Solar Concentrator Device

TL;DR

This paper presents an analytical, probabilistic model for calculating the optical efficiency of luminescent solar concentrators, simplifying previous complex numerical simulations and enabling rapid parameter analysis.

Contribution

It introduces explicit formulas derived analytically that reduce complexity and facilitate quick efficiency predictions and parameter optimization for luminescent solar concentrators.

Findings

Formulas validated by simulations

Instant calculation of efficiency for given parameters

Enables inverse design of device parameters

Abstract

An analytical solution for the optical efficiency of a luminescent solar concentrator is presented. Due to a large number of input parameters and their complex effect on the device efficiency numerical simulations have been previously used for this purpose. The formulas, provided here, derived using a probabilistic approach, significantly reduce the complexity of the problem. The equations were validated by simulations and the obtained explicit expressions provide a clear common ground for the theoretical description of such devices. Implementation by a computer algebra program yields instant results for any set of input parameters. It allows a higher level of analysis, where an inverse task of finding parameters for a given efficiency can be readily solved.