RaySim 6.0: a free geometrical ray tracing program for silicon solar cells

The optical design of silicon solar cells and modules is becoming increasingly more important as manufacturers push the limits of efficiency. Light trapping, for example, is becoming ever more important for thin commercial silicon solar cells, as are the internal optics of metal-semiconductor contacts and the external optics of the module. RaySim version 6.0 is a geometrical ray tracing simulator, written for the Microsoft Windows graphical-user-interface (GUI) operating system. The simulator has a pseudo-3D display mode that allows users to visualize models and traces. It also uses dialog-based GUI for building optical models and specifying simulation parameters, making model building and testing flexible and straightforward. The simulator is also multi-chromatic in that it can co-trace an arbitrary spectrum of wavelengths with dispersive optical materials and surfaces. Perhaps its best feature is that it´s free, available for download from http://www.pv.unsw.edu.au/links/products.asp.