Modelling Photovoltaic Systems using Pspice

by

Luis Castañer and Santiago Silvestre

        PSpice® is the most popular standard for analog and mixed-signal simulation. Engineers rely on PSpice for accurate and robust analysis of their designs. Universities and Semiconductor manufacturers use to work with Pspice and also provide PSpice models for their new devices. PSpice results a powerful and robust simulation tool and works also with Orcad Capture®, Concept® HDL, or PSpice schematics in an integrated environment where engineers create designs, set up and run simulations, and analyze their simulation results. More details and actualised information about Pspice can be found at the URL : http://www.pspice.com/

        At the same web site a free Pspice, Pspice 9.1 student version ( for students), version van be download. A request for a free Orcad Lite Edition CD is also available for Pspice evaluation : http://www.pspice.com/download/default.asp

        The 9.1 PSpice Student Version includes these Cadence products:

        Pspice Manuals and other technical documents can also be obtained at the above referred web site in PDF format. Despite a small introduction about the use of Pspice is included in chapter 1 of this book, we strongly encourage readers to consult these manuals for a more detailed information. An excellent list of books dedicated to Pspice users can also be found at : http://www.pspice.com/publications/books.asp

        All the models presented in this book, developed for Pspice simulation of solar cells and PV systems behaviour, have been specially made for running into version 9 of Pspice. Pspice offers a very good schematics environment, Orcad Capture for desing entry, in order to enter circuit designs that allow pspice simulation, despite this fact, all pspice models presented in this book are presented as text files, and the corresponding net list can also be used also for design entry into Pspice and simulation. We think that this selection offers a more comprehensive approach to the presented models, makes easy to understand how these models are implemented and allows quickly adaptation of these models to different PV system architectures and design environments just easily including the necessary file modifications in each case, attending to the user necessities. A second reason for the above mentioned selection of design entry into Pspice is that text files are transportable to other Spice existent versions without relevant effort, this is not possible if the selected design entry is by schematic option.

        By other hand the translation of the presented models as net list files, to the equivalent schematic format is direct in most cases.

        All models presented in the book for solar cells and the rest of components of a PV system can be fount in this site, where users can download the corresponding net lists for pspice simulation of all the examples and simulation results presented in the book. A set of different files corresponding to stimulus, libraries etc…, also necessaries to reproduce some of the simulations shown in the book can also be found and downloaded too.