High-concentration photovoltaic designs based on miniature parabolic dishes

A new approach for concentrating photovoltaic systems that can easily attain the maximum flux levels commensurate with solar cell technology is proposed. The collection unit is a miniature paraboloidal dish which concentrates sunlight into a short glass rod. The flux distribution of the transported light is homogenized in a miniature glass kaleidoscope that is optically coupled to a small high-efficiency solar cell. The cell resides behind the dish and can be cooled adequately with a passive heat sink. These nominally independent collection units can be assembled into modules and arrays that produce almost any prescribed power level. All system elements are predicated on existing technologies.