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| Array | All of the solar modules in a system. |
| Battery | An optional solar system component that provides a building with backup power, so when the grid goes down, the building will still be electrified. |
| Electrical Grid (a.k.a. "The Grid") | The complex, interconnected network of wires that delivers power from power plants to buildings. |
| Inverter | A device that converts the Direct Current (DC) produced by solar modules into Alternating Current (AC) that comes out of standard electrical wall sockets. |
| Kilowatt (kW) | 1,000 watts of electric power. A measure of instantaneous power usage. |
| Kilowatt-hour (kWh) | A unit of electric power consumption indicating the total energy used by a one kilowatt load acting for one hour. For example, 10 lightbulbs of 100 Watts each running for 1 hour would use 1 kWh of electricity:
10 bulbs x 100 W = 1000 W
1000 W = 1 kW
1 kW x 1 hr = 1 kWh
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| Net Metering | A service option available from your electric utility that allows your electric meter to spin backwards when excess energy is generated by your solar electric system. The excess energy is effectively stored by the utility until it is required for future use by the customer. |
| Semiconductor | The element family of all commercial solar cell technologies. Usually silicon - the same element used in computer chips. |
| Solar Cell | The basic building block of most solar electric systems. Solar cells are made of a semiconductor material (typically silicon) and convert sunlight directly into electricity. They are chained together and encased under glass to form a solar module. |
| Solar Module | Commonly called a "solar panel", modules are the smallest solar electric components sold for buildings. They are often made from many smaller solar cells, but can also be composed of a single thin-film sheet. For building applications they can range from 40 watts to 300 watts. |
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