Sciencetech Solar Simulators
High Intensity, Uniform Illumination of artificial solar irradiation
Typically, high power solar simulators use an ellipsoidal reflector to capture light from an arc lamp source inside the reflector, an arrangement that results in a light pattern with a bright outer region and a dark center. This non-uniformity is unacceptable in many solar simulator applications and as a result, forces many of our solar simulator competitors to use designs involving diffusers to reduce the non-uniformity. This results in a reduction of intensity and a distortion of the spectrum on the target area.
Sciencetech’s solution to these problems is to use a unique system of mirrors that ‘fold’ the light onto the target plane, effectively reducing the light that is lost with little to no spectral distortion and also ensures no chromatic aberration in the output beam.
In addition, each of Sciencetech’s solar simulators are customizable to best suit your requirements. The design of the fully reflective solar simulator permits a trade-off between power and uniformity. Higher uniformity can be achieved with lower power; or power can be increased and uniformity reduced.
Introduction to Our Ultra-High Efficiency Solar Simulator
Class AAA UHE-NL-150
We manufacture many other varieties of solar simulators and this demonstration is applicable to our other solar simulator types as well. All the instructions in the video will also be provided in the manual that comes along with the system.
Sciencetech Webinar: Versatile Solar Simulators
Explore Unlimited Research Opportunities
This webinar is an overview of the guidelines and principles behind designing and manufacturing Solar Simulators. Discussion topics include: why use a solar simulator, how to choose the right solar simulator, solar simulation specs, and an overview of our UHE Solar Simulator.
Sciencetech Solar Simulator Models
Class AAA and ABA (Spectral match, spatial non-uniformity of irradiance, temporal instability)
Sciencetech Inc. designs and fabricates more than 30 different variants of Solar Simulators. Compliance to standards IEC 60904-9, ASTM E 927 Class A spectral match, Class A or B spatial non-uniformity of irradiance, Class A temporal instability. Take a look below
| Solar Simulators | Target Size | Working Distance | Spatial Non-Uniformity |
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| Square Side | Circ. Diameter | ||||||||
| Inches | cm | Inches | cm | Inches | cm | Class | |||
| SF300A | 0.7 | 1.8 | 1 | 2.5 | 3 - 4 | 13 | A | ||
| SF300B | 1.4 | 3.6 | 2 | 5 | 3 - 4 | 13 | B | ||
| SciSun 150 | 2 | 5 | 2 | 5 | 15 | 38 | A | ||
| SciSun 300 | 2 | 5 | 2 | 5 | 15 | 38 | A | ||
| 2.1 | 5.2 | 3 | 7.5 | 18 | 45 | B | |||
| SS1.0kW | 3.5 | 8.8 | 5 | 12.5 | 30 | 75 | B | ||
| SS1.6K | 4.2 | 10.7 | 6 | 15.3 | 36 | 90 | B | ||
| SS2.5K | 5.6 | 14 | 7.8 | 20 | 42 | 105 | B | ||
| SS0.5kW-UV | 2.1 | 5.3 | 3 | 7.5 | 18 | 45 | B | ||
| SS1.0kW-UV | 3.5 | 8.8 | 5 | 12.5 | 35.2 | 88 | B | ||
| SS1.6kW-UV | 4.5 | 11.3 | 6.4 | 16 | 50 | 125 | B | ||
| SS2.5kW-UV | 5.6 | 14.1 | 8 | 20 | 42 | 105 | B | ||
| SFR1.6K | 6.3 | 16 | 8.5 | 21.5 | ~12 | 30 | B | ||
| SFR3.0K | 8.4 | 21 | 11.5 | 29.5 | ~12 | 30 | B | ||
|
Fiberized
(Optical Fiber) |
Solar LightLine A1 | 1 | 2.5 | 1 | 2.5 | 4 | 10 |
A
|
|
| Solar LightLine A4 | 1 | 2.5 | 1 | 2.5 | 4 | 10 |
A
|
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|
Workstation
(with Chamber Opt.) |
SL-38A-WS | 1.5 | 3.8 | 1.5 | 3.8 | 10 | 25 |
A
|
|
| SL-50A-WS | 2 | 5 | 2 | 5 | 10 | 25 |
A
|
||
| SL-60A-WS | 2.4 | 6 | 2.4 | 6 | 10 | 25 |
A
|
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|
UHE Work Station
(Ultra High Efficiency) |
UHE-NS-075 | 3 | 7.5 | 3 | 7.5 | 8 | 20 |
A
|
|
| UHE-NS-100 | 4 | 10 | 4 | 10 | 12 | 30 |
A
|
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| UHE-NL-150 | 6 | 15 | 6 | 15 | 20 | 50 |
A
|
||
| UHE-NL-200 | 8 | 20 | 8 | 20 | 23 | 58 |
A
|
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| UHE-NS-250 | 10 | 25 | 10 | 25 | 26 | 65 |
A
|
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| UHE-NS-300 | 12 | 30 | 12 | 30 | 26 | 65 |
A
|
||
| LASI | 20 | 50 | 20 | 50 | 40 | 100 | C | ||
| PSS1 | 40 | 100 | 40 | 100 | 40 | 100 | A | ||
| PSS1.5 | 60 | 150 | 60 | 150 | 40 | 100 | A | ||
| PSS2 | 80 | 200 | 80 | 200 | 40 | 100 | A | ||
| FSSC 200-4000 Suns | 2 | 5 | 2 | 5 | ~0.5 | ~1.2 | A | ||
The Solar Constant and Solar Simulation
The radiation from the Sun is measured in two ways for a variety of fields of research. The solar constant is the irradiance or intensity of light incident at the surface of the Earth’s atmosphere on a plane normal to the angle of incidence.
This value has been defined by the World Meteorological Organization to be 1366.7W/m2 outside the atmosphere. The irradiance of the Sun at the Earth’s surface varies under different conditions due to absorption and scattering effects in the atmosphere, and so a number of other constants are important in regards to the irradiance of a solar simulator.
| Solar Spectrum * | Filter | Power Density (mW / cm2) | Transmission % |
| In Space | AM0 | 137 | 61.3% |
| Direct Solar Spectrum at 0° Zenith Angle | AM1.0D | 104 | 67% |
| Global Solar Spectrum at 0° Zenith Angle | AM1.0G | 100 | 66.7% |
| Direct Solar Spectrum at 48.2° Zenith Angle | AM1.5D | 93 | 65% |
| Global Solar Spectrum at 48.2° Zenith Angle | AM1.5G | 100 | 58.5% |
| Direct Solar Spectrum at 60.1° Zenith Angle | AM2.0D | 71 | 57.3% |
| * All measurements at sea level, excluding AM0 | |||
The table above gives the 1 SUN irradiance values for both of Sciencetech’s filter in common simulated conditions, as well as the approximate transmission values relative to unfiltered light between 250-2500nm.
Below the atmosphere the radiation emitted from the Sun can be divided into two components: direct radiation that comes from the Sun itself, and scattered radiation coming from the rest of the sky, including a portion reflected back from the ground. Solar simulators are adjusted to imitate the spectral distribution of sunlight for a variety of environments; to do this the spectral distribution from the xenon arc lamp source is altered and refined using Air Mass (AM) filters.
When discussing filters, the direct radiation spectrum is imitated using a direct (D) filter, and the total including scattered sky and ground radiation is matched by using a global (G) filter that imitates both components together.
Sciencetech AM Filters
Sciencetech’s AM filters are designed to be used individually for standard conditions, although they can also be arranged in series to produce other spectral distributions. Many solar simulator systems used by our competition require filters to be used in series to achieve the same performance as Sciencetech’s filters, for example using AM0 and AM1.0 filters in series to achieve a AM1.0 spectral distribution, whereas Sciencetech’s AM1.0 filter can be used alone to achieve the same result, reducing power loss and the cost of additional filters.
.png "Sciencetech Xenon Arc Lamp Light Source")
Most Sciencetech solar simulators use xenon arc lamps, which enables the system to produce an intense, collimated beam of light, similar to that of a 5,800oK blackbody. The biggest difference between the two is the xenon lines are present in the arc spectrum, and atmospheric absorptions in solar spectra, which is especially highlighted in the 800-1100nm range because of the intense line output of the lamp. An AM0 filter can reduce this effect so that the average level in specified bands matches solar levels above the atmosphere to better than ±25%, although complete elimination of the xenon lines while preserving the rest of the spectrum is impossible with a practical filter. AM1.0, 1.5 and 2.0 filters further modify the visible and UV portions of the spectrum for different sea-level conditions, and coupled with the use of high pressure Xenon arc lamps Sciencetech is capable of producing Class A standards for our solar simulators.
The graphs on the right show the typical output spectra of Sciencetech’s fully reflective solar simulators. These spectral irradiance curves combine the spectral curves of the xenon arc lamp source, air mass filter, and mirrors used inside the solar simulator beam homogenizer. Actual output spectra may vary due to the condition of the lamp and manufacturing tolerances of the air mass filters. In order to simplify visual comparison of the spectral curves of our solar simulators with ASTM E927-10 standard curves, the simulator outputs are normalized to the corresponding standard spectrum.
