Grid-connected photovoltaic power system Solar energy gathered by photovoltaic solar panels, intended for delivery to a power grid, must be conditioned, or processed for use, by a grid-connected inverter. Fundamentally, an inverter changes the DC input voltage from the PV to AC voltage for the grid. This inverter sits between the solar array and the grid, draws energy from each, and may be a large stand-alone unit or may be a collection of small inverters, each physically attached to individual solar panels. See AC Module. The inverter must monitor grid voltage, waveform, and frequency. One reason for monitoring is if the grid is dead
Photovoltaic effect electric energy. The photovoltaic effect can also occur when two photons are absorbed simultaneously in a process called two-photon photovoltaic effect... The photovoltaic effect was first observed by French physicist A. E. Becquerel in 1839. He explained his discovery in "Comptes rendus de l'Académie des sciences", "the production of an electric current when two plates of platinum or gold immersed in an acid, neutral, or alkaline solution are exposed in an uneven way to solar radiation." Besides the direct excitation of free electrons, a photovoltaic effect can also arise simply due to the heating caused by absorption of the light.