Program overview
Solar energy technology use is expanding rapidly. The Solar Photovoltaic (PV) sector is the largest and fastest growing renewable energy employer worldwide with an increasing need for experts that can support this growth.
In this MicroMasters program you will gain the knowledge and skills needed to pursue a career in the solar energy field and become a successful solar energy professional. This program will teach you what is expected from solar experts, and will prepare you for employment in various capacities including:
- Systems design and engineering
- Solar systems installation
- Device fabrication and characterization
- QA and reliability testing
- Project management and consultancy as well as (technical) sales
What will you learn
- The physics of and how to model all aspects of a working solar cell: performance, efficiency limits and design rules.
- Design concepts and fabrication processes of various photovoltaic (PV) technologies and applications.
- How to evaluate components of a PV system: PV modules, inverters, DC-DC converters, batteries, charge controllers and cables.
- Application techniques for designing a PV system ranging from a residential rooftop system to a utility scale solar farm.
- Design concepts of microgrids that include PV systems.
- How to assess the economics and ecology of PV systems and communicate these accordingly.
Program Class List
1Solar Energy: Photovoltaic (PV) Energy Conversion
Course Details
1
Learn how solar cells generate electricity, and about the semiconductor physics and optics required to design and manufacture solar cells.
2Solar Energy: Photovoltaic (PV) Technologies
Course Details
2
Explore the main PV technologies in the current market, to gain in-depth knowledge on the design and processing methods of solar cells.
3Solar Energy: Photovoltaic (PV) Systems
Course Details
3
Explore the wide range of solar energy applications and learn to design a real PV installation with excellent performance and reliability.
4Solar Energy: Integration of Photovoltaic Systems in Microgrids
Course Details
4
Learn how to integrate a photovoltaic system into a microgrid of your design.
5Solar Energy Engineering: Comprehensive Exams
Course Details
5
Finalize the Solar Energy Engineering program to become a MicroMasters graduate.
Meet Your Instructors
Arno Smets
Professor, Electrical Engineering, Mathematics and Computer Science at Delft University of Technology
Dr. Arno H.M. Smets is Professor in Solar Energy in the Photovoltaics Material and Devices group at the faculty of Electrical Engineering, Mathematics and Computer Science, Delft University of Technology. From 2005-2010 he worked at the Research Center for Photovoltaics at the National Institute of Advanced Industrial Science and Technology (AIST) in Tsukuba Japan. His research work is focused on processing of thin silicon films, innovative materials and new concepts for photovoltaic applications. He is lecturer for BSc and MSc courses on Photovoltaics and Sustainable Energy at TU Delft. His online edX course on Solar Energy attracted over 150,000 students worldwide. He is co-author of the book “Solar Energy. The physics and engineering of photovoltaic conversion technologies and systems.”
Professor Smets was awarded the first ever edX Prize for Exceptional Contributions to Online Teaching and Learning for his Solar Energy course. To learn more, visit here.
Miro Zeman
Head of the Electrical Sustainable Energy department at TU Delft
Professor Miro Zeman is the head of the Electrical Sustainable Energy department at the TU Delft faculty of Electrical Engineering, Mathematics and Computer Science. His research interests encompass the development of novel materials and concepts for the improvement of thin-film silicon solar cell performance and modeling of devices based on amorphous semiconductors. Since receiving his PhD in 1989 he was in charge of more than 30 Dutch and 6 European projects dealing with the development of thin-film solar cells and technology for their fabrication. He has authored and co-authored more than 270 scientific publications; he contributed to 3 scientific books. He acts as a reviewer for several scientific journals. He regularly attends world conferences on advanced materials and photovoltaics in Europe, USA, Japan and China, where he contributed with more than 80 presentations. He is co-author of the book “Solar Energy. The physics and engineering of photovoltaic conversion technologies and systems.”
René van Swaaij
Associate Professor, Photovoltaics Material and Devices at TU Delft
Dr. René van Swaaij is associate professor in the Photovoltaics Material and Devices group at the TU Delft faculty of Electrical Engineering, Mathematics and Computer Science. He is the programme director of the master programme Sustainable Energy Technology. His research interests lie mainly with the processing of silicon based solar cells and the physics underlying the operation of these cells. He is in charge of several projects in the field of thin-film silicon solar cells and lectures on semiconductor device physics in BSc and MSc courses. René has authored and co-authored more than 100 journal and conference papers is and is co-author of the book “Solar Energy. The physics and engineering of photovoltaic conversion technologies and systems.”
Olindo Isabella
Assistant Professor, Photovoltaics Material and Devices at TU Delft
Dr. Olindo Isabella is assistant professor in the Photovoltaics Material and Devices group at the TU Delft faculty of Electrical Engineering, Mathematics and Computer Science. Between 2011 and 2012 he was visiting researcher at AIST (Tsukuba, Japan) working on high performance thin-film a-SiGe:H absorber for multi-junction thin-film silicon solar cells. He received his PhD (cum laude) from Delft University of Technology in 2013 for his research on light management in thin-film silicon solar cells, overseeing activities on c-Si solar cells and PV systems. He has contributed to two scientific books, has 3 patent applications and is co-author of the book “Solar Energy. The physics and engineering of photovoltaic conversion technologies and systems.” He developed and manages the Lab course on photovoltaics offering students hands-on experience with all aspects of photovoltaic systems.
Ravi Vasudevan
Postdoctoral Researcher with the Photovoltaic Materials and Devices at TU Delft
Dr. Ravi Vasudevan obtained his MSc and PhD from the Delft University of Technology. He has researched solar energy and is an expert in silicon heterojunction solar cells. He also is experienced in solar energy education. He has given many lecturers at the BSc and MSc level for various solar-based courses at TU Delft. He also helped to develop the MSc course in PV Systems taught at TU Delft and is in charge of managing the creation of the Solar Energy Engineering ProfEd series hosted on the edX platform.
Seyedmahdi Izadkhast
Postdoctoral fellow researcher, DC Systems, Energy Conversion and Storage at TU Delft
Seyedmahdi Izadkhast received PhD degrees within SETS doctorate from Delft University of Technology, The Netherlands; Comillas Pontifical University, Spain; KTH Royal Institute of Technology, Sweden. Since January 2016, Dr. S. Izadkhast has been working as a postdoctoral research fellow with DC Systems, Energy Conversion and Storage (DCE&S) at the Delft University of Technology, where he is also the lecturer of "AC & DC Microgrids" course, and OnlineSolar and instructor/project leader of "Systems Engineering" course. Moreover, he has been involved in numerous international research projects like GRID4EU, NICE GRID, CSGriP, and DCSMART ERA-Net SG+.
Laura Ramirez
Assistant Professor of Energy Conversion at TU Delft
Laura Ramirez is an Assistant Professor of Energy Conversion with the Department of Electrical Sustainable Energy of Delft University of Technology and DC Systems, Energy Conversion and Storage group (Faculty of Electrical Engineering, Mathematics and Computer Science). In 2003, she earned her Bachelor’s degree in Electrical Engineering and her Bachelor’s degree in Music with a major in Piano at the Universidad de Costa Rica (but she cannot improvise). She graduated with honors from her M.Sc. studies in Electrical Power Engineering at Delft University of Technology in 2007. Laura worked on her PhD project from September 2007 to December 2011. In 2013, she was awarded with the Erasmus Energy Science Award.
Pavol Bauer
Full Professor, Department of Electrical Sustainable Energy at TU Delft
Pavol Bauer is a full Professor in the Department of Electrical Sustainable Energy of Delft University of Technology and head of DC Systems, Energy Conversion and Storage group. He earned his Master’s degree in Electrical Engineering at the Technical University of Kosice (‘85) and Ph.D. from Delft University of Technology (’95). He has worked on many projects for industry, focusing on solar wind and wave energy, power electronic applications for power systems and electric mobility. He is a Senior Member of the IEEE (’97), former chairman of Benelux IEEE Joint Industry Applications Society, Power Electronics and Power Engineering Society chapter, chairman of the Power Electronics and Motion Control (PEMC) council, member of the Executive Committee of European Power Electronics Association (EPE).
