How to Attach Tabs to Solar Cells

Attaching tabs to a solar cell is an essential step in the process of building a fully functional cell for daily use. Solar cells extract energy from the sun and use it in place of traditional electricity. Solar cells can power cars, homes and even commercial real estate if used properly. While attaching tabs to a solar cell may sound difficult, it is actually quite simple with the proper instructions.

Things You'll Need

• Solar cell
• Tabbing wire
• Wire cutters
• Flux pen
• Solder
• Solder iron

Instructions

1. Cut the wire so that it is twice the length of the solar cell that you plan to attach it to using a pair of wire cutters. The wire should be twice the length of the cell because it will be used to attach the solar cell to the one beneath it. Repeat for each of the tabs that appear on the solar cell you are working on. Be sure to do only one solar cell at a time so that you minimize the chances of making a mistake.

2. Use the flux pen to "wet" the white lines of the cell before attaching them. Wetting the white lines refers to the process of coating the lines with the flux pen fluid so that they are electrically charged when the wires are attached to the solar cell. Grab one piece of wire and apply a piece of solder to the end of it and carefully push the solder down the wire with the solder iron. Repeat for each tab on the solar cell.

3. Press the soldered half of the wire down softly against the white line on the solar cell using the solder iron. Move the iron up and down the tab wire slowly until the wire is attached to the solar cell. Repeat this process for the other tabs of the solar cell. The solar cell is now ready to be connected with the solar cell beneath it.

References

• Tropical-Rainforest-Animals: Attaching tabs on solar cells