menu
  • expo
  • expo
  • login Sign in
Office of Undergraduate Research Home » 2020 Undergraduate Research Symposium Schedules

Found 1 project

Oral Presentation 3

2:45 PM to 4:15 PM
A Mathematical Study of Real-Time Solar Power Data and Vector Calculus of Silicon
Presenters
  • Alana Yao, Fifth Year, Computer Science & Software Engineering
  • Dave Edward (Dave) Diaz, Sophomore, Civil Engineering, Lake Wash Tech Coll
  • Kylie Dillon, Sophomore, Computer science, Lake Wash Tech Coll
  • Alex Klimecky
  • Sam F. (Sam) Wolf, Junior, Computer Science & Software Engineering
Mentor
  • Narayani Choudhury, Engineering, Mathematics, Physics, Lake Washington Institute of Technology, Kirkland
Session
    Session O-3F: Applied Computer Science: Robots, AR, and More
  • 2:45 PM to 4:15 PM

  • Other students mentored by Narayani Choudhury (3)
A Mathematical Study of Real-Time Solar Power Data and Vector Calculus of Siliconclose

 Solar power provides a renewable energy resource that reduces carbon footprints and lowers global warming. Solar panels use photovoltaics which convert light to electricity. Most commercial solar panels use silicon wafers. Electrons in these semiconducting silicon panels are freed by solar energy and are induced to travel through an electrical circuit, powering electrical devices or sending electricity to the grid. We have analyzed the reported crystal structure of silicon, which crystallizes in the same pattern as diamond and has a face centered cubic structure with lattice constant 5.4307 Å. We employed vector calculus-based methods to calculate the nearest-neighbor bond lengths (2.3516 Å) and bond angles (109.471o) of crystalline silicon. These calculated bond-lengths and angle values are in good agreement with reported data. We visualized the electronic charge-density of silicon. Using vector-calculus based methods, we derived the equation for the plane of the solar panel and estimated the power that a solar panel can produce. Real time data from solar panel grids are currently available from energy databases. We determined the total energy produced by a solar panel array over the course of a day by finding the area under the power-vs-time real-time data reported in energy databases using integral calculus-based methods. To understand seasonal variations, we compared solar energy production on a hot summer day and during an overcast winter day. Our studies provide a microscopic atomic level understanding of solar energy and provides an integrated study of mathematics with solar physics and engineering.


filter_list Find Presenters

Use the search filters below to find presentations you’re interested in!













CLEAR FILTERS
filter_list Find Mentors

Search by mentor name or select a department to see all students with mentors in that department.





CLEAR FILTERS

Copyright © 2007–2026 University of Washington. Managed by the Center for Experiential Learning & Diversity, a unit of Undergraduate Academic Affairs.

The University of Washington is committed to providing access and reasonable accommodation in its services, programs, activities, education and employment for individuals with disabilities. For disability accommodations, please visit the Disability Services Office (DSO) website or contact dso@uw.edu.