In 1839, the ability of some materials to create an electrical charge from light exposure was first observed by the French physicist Edmond Becquerel.[1] Though these initial solar panels were too inefficient for even simple electric devices, they were used as an instrument to measure light.
The observation by Becquerel was not replicated again until 1873, when the English electrical engineer Hillsborough Smith discovered that the charge could be caused by light hitting selenium. After this discovery, William Grills Adams and Richard Evans Day published “The action of light on selenium” in 1876, describing the experiment they used to replicate Smith’s results.
In 1881, the American inventor Charles Fritters created the first commercial solar panel, which was reported by Fritters as “continuous, constant and of considerable force not only by exposure to sunlight but also to dim, diffused daylight.”[4] However, these solar panels were very inefficient, especially compared to coal-fired power plants.
In 1939, Russell Ohl created the solar cell design that is used in many modern solar panels. He patented his design in 1941.[5] In 1954, this design was first used by Bell Labs to create the first commercially viable silicon solar cell.[1]
Solar panel installers saw significant growth between 2008 and 2013. Due to that growth many installers had projects that were not “ideal” solar roof tops to work with and had to find solutions to shaded roofs and orientation difficulties.[7] This challenge was initially addressed by the re-popularization of micro-inverters and later the invention of power optimizer.
Solar panel manufacturers partnered with micro-inverter companies to create AC modules and power optimizer companies partnered with module manufacturers to create smart modules. In 2013 many solar panel manufacturers announced and began shipping their smart module solutions.
under the weight of the splendor of these visions! A wonderful serenity has taken possession of my entire soul, like these sweet mornings of spring which I enjoy with my whole heart. I am alone, and feel the charm of existence in this spot, which was created for the bliss of souls like mine.
I am so happy, my dear friend, so absorbed in the exquisite sense of mere tranquil existence, that I neglect my talents. I should be incapable of drawing a single stroke at the present moment; and yet I feel that I never was a greater artist than now.
When, while the lovely valley teems with vapor around me, and the meridian sun strikes the upper surface of the impenetrable foliage of my trees, and but a few stray gleams steal into the inner sanctuary, I throw myself down among the tall grass by the trickling stream; and, as I lie close to the earth, a thousand unknown plants are noticed by me: when I hear the buzz of the little world among the stalks, and grow familiar with the countless indescribable forms of the insects and flies, then I feel the presence of the Almighty, who formed us in his own image, and the breath of that universal love which bears and sustains us, as it floats around us in an eternity of bliss; and then, my friend, when darkness overspreads my eyes, and heaven and earth seem to dwell in my soul and absorb its power, like the form of a beloved mistress, then I often think with longing, Oh, would I could describe these conceptions, could impress upon paper all that is living so full and warm within me.
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