Submission Format for IMS2004 (Title in 18-point Times font)

Many popular models for photovoltaic system performance (e.g., [1], [2]) employ a single diode model (e.g., [3]) to compute the IV curve for a module or string of modules for given irradiance and temperature conditions. Most commonly (e.g., [4]), parameters are determined using only current and voltage at short circuit, open circuit and maximum power from a single IV curve at standard test conditions, along with reported temperature coefficients. In contrast, module testing frequently records IV curves at a wide range of irradiance and temperature conditions, such as those specified in IEC 61853-1 [5], which, when available, should also be used to parameterize the performance model. We propose a parameter estimation method that makes use of the full range of available IV curves, and demonstrate the accuracy of the resulting performance model. Index Terms — semiconductor device modeling, photovoltaic systems, parameter estimation.