To address the structural safety of flexible roll-out solar array in the vibration environment during the launch phase, an innovative vibration reduction and protection method based on winding preload and polyimide foam is proposed. This solution effectively improves the vibration resistance of the battery array without the need for additional complex structures, simply by adjusting the winding preload and introducing a polyimide foam vibration damping layer. This study first established a refined finite element simulation model of a flexible wound solar array, and then evaluated the effects of different vibration frequencies, amplitudes and preload forces on the structural safety of the array. Finally, vibration experiments on a small engineering prototype verified the vibration damping effect of the scheme in practical applications. The results show that the design can significantly reduce the strain response of the CIC cell, and the vibration damping efficiency reaches more than 60%. The high consistency of the simulation and experimental results indicates that the vibration damping scheme has strong engineering feasibility and practical application potential.

Flexible solar cells are becoming more widely acknowledged as essential elements for upcoming applications as space solar cell arrays move from rigid and semi-rigid structures to flexible designs with high packing ratios, less weight, and lower costs. The exact measurement of these cells’ essential bending radius is necessary because they must preserve both their structural integrity and photoelectric conversion efficiency under bending conditions. In response to this need, a new method based on large deflection buckling theory is proposed for testing the bending radius of flexible solar cells. Accurate and repeatable measurements are made possible by an automated testing instrument designed to support this method. To validate the accuracy of this method, its results were compared with those obtained using the traditional mandrel method. The accuracy and dependability of this method were confirmed by the trials, which revealed that the critical bending radius determined by the big deflection buckling method was quite compatible with that of the mandrel method. The findings of the study serve as a guide for maximizing the performance of upcoming flexible electronic devices in addition to providing exact mechanical parameters for the structural design of flexible solar cells.

Space solar cells are critical components of aerospace energy systems. The strain they experience is primarily transmitted from the solar array substrate through the adhesive layer. Accurately characterizing the strain transfer from the substrate to the cell is crucial for understanding the mechanical resistance performance of space solar cells. This paper establishes a theoretical model for strain transfer in space solar cells based on shear-lag theory. It provides data for both uniform and typical non-uniform strain fields and theoretically examines the strain transmission mechanism in space solar cells. The model’s validity was confirmed through ANSYS finite element analysis and physical experiments, demonstrating the correctness of the theoretical model. The study also investigates how the physical and geometric characteristics of space solar cells impact the strain transfer rate, offering a theoretical basis for their design.

Another option for the next generation of solar cells for space applications is the inverted metamorphic (IMM) GaAs triple junction solar cell, which has a greater photoelectric conversion efficiency since it significantly addresses the current issue of subcell mismatch. IMM solar cells have the mechanical properties of ductile materials, which are different from the brittle materials properties of conventional GaAs triple junction solar cells; therefore, the accuracy of the constitutive model of IMM solar cells is a key factor in simulating its resistance to the mechanical environment. In this paper, the Voce constitutive model is used to simulate the tensile experimental process of IMM solar cells. On the basis of the ANSYS-OptiSlang co-simulation platform, the NLPQL optimization algorithm is used, and the tensile experimental validation is combined to form the objective function with the difference between the numerical simulation and experimental data. Then, the objective function is minimized to acquire the parameters of the constitutive model. The results indicate that the stress-strain curves calculated by the inverse optimization method are very similar to the experimental results. The ensuing mechanical simulation analysis can make use of the IMM solar cell constitutive model that was created using this technique.