Solar cells allow the energy from the sun to be converted into electrical energy; this makes solar energy much more environmentally friendly than fossil fuel energy sources. These solar cells are connected together in a photovoltaic (PV) module to provide the higher current, voltage and power outputs necessary for electrical applications. However, the performance of the PV module is limited by the performance of the individual cells. Hot Spots are generated when there is mismatch in Short

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... t Current of the cells connected in series due to various reasons ie. some cells are damaged or shaded and produce lower current output than the other cells in the series connected string. The localized heat generation results in a hot spot which can cause damage to the cell material, melting the interconnection solder, discolouration in the EVA and cracks in the glass .The cell mismatch lowers the module performance and can result in further damage as the weak cells are reverse biased and dissipate heat(Hot Spots). PV modules can be characterized using various techniques, each providing important information about the performance of the module. .Some of these techniques are Electroluminescence & Infra Red imaging.