There are 3 basic types of construction of PV panels. All those discussed here employ silicon.

Mono Crystalline cells are cut from one crystal of silicon- they are effectively a slice from a crystal. In looks, it has a gentle texture and you will be able to see the thickness of the slice. These are the most efficient and the most costly to manufacture.

Polycrystalline (or Multi Crystalline) cells are efficiently a slice cut from a block of silicon, consisting of a lot of crystals. They have got a speckled reflective physical appearance and again you can see the thickness of the slice.

Amorphous cells are manufactured by putting a thin film of amorphous (non crystalline) silicon onto a wide choice of areas. These are the very least photovoltaic efficiency and lowest priced to produce of the three types. Because of the amorphous nature of the thin layer, it is flexible, and if produced on a flexible surface, the whole solar panel can be elastic.

Based on the main idea that a solar cell getting more light energy will produce much more electricity, focusing photovoltaic solar panels simply include a method (typically using a lens or mirrors) to concentrate more sunlight onto a photovoltaic cell. As fewer cells are then required for the same area of panel (or light capturing area) it may then become economical to employ a very effective multi junction cell.

Potentially, this sort of panel has the following positive aspects:

- It has a higher overall proficiency, capturing more solar energy per meter squared resulting in a smaller area of panels required for a particular output. Resulting proficiency levels can approach 50%.

- Probably lower cost per watt of output because of lower number of solar cells required, while the material cost and production process of the optics (light concentration mechanism) is comparatively inexpensive.

- Lower utilization of environmentally unfriendly chemicals involved in the panel manufacturing process due to lower number of pv cells.

- Where the concentration is such that cooling of the photovoltaic module is needed, a panel may have the capacity to output heat simultaneously as electricity.

However, there are drawbacks:

- In all but the lower levels of focus, heat must be dissipated from the cells. Cooling is needed as cell efficiency is significantly reduced at higher temperatures, or in extreme situations, cells may be damaged.

- In all but the lower levels of concentration a tracker system will be needed to keep the concentrated light aimed at the cells.

- As diffuse light cannot be effectively focused, concentrating PV panels are best suited to areas with a high level of very clear sunshine.

Though research has continued on concentrating photovoltaic efficiency for many years, they have not made their mark on the industry, and where they have been used, it has been in large scale projects. CPV panels that have been made have come in "various shapes and sizes" with no apparent design leading the field.

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