| AC | Alternating current |
| A/D | Analogue to digital |
| AFM | Atomic force microscopy |
| AGM | Absorbent glass mat |
| AR | Antireflection |
| ARC | Antireflection coating |
| a-SI or α-Si | (Hydrogenated) amorphous silicon |
| AM | Air mass |
| AOI | Angle of incidence |
| APCVD | Atmospheric pressure chemical vapour deposition |
| ASTM | American Society for Testing and Materials |
| ATOX | Atomic oxygen |
| BCSC | Buried contact solar cell |
| BIPV | Building-integrated photovoltaics |
| BMFT | German Ministry of Education and Research |
| BOL | Beginning of life |
| BOS | Balance of system |
| BR | Bragg reflector |
| BSF | Back-surface field |
| BSFR | Back surface field and reflector |
| BSR | Back surface reflector |
| BST | British standard time |
| CAST | Chinese Academy of Space Technology |
| CBD | Chemical bath deposition |
| CDV | Committee draft for voting |
| CEI | Comitato Elettrotecnico Italiano (Italy) |
| CGA | Compressed Gas Association (USA) |
| CHP | Combined heat and power, co-generation |
| CIBSE | Chartered Institution of Building Services Engineers (UK) |
| CIS | Copper indium di-selenide |
| CIGS | Copper indium gallium di-selenide |
| CNES | Centre National d’Etudes Spatiales (France) |
| CVD | Chemical vapour deposition |
| CZ | Czochralski |
| DC | Direct current |
| DEV | Deutsches Einheitsverfahren (Germany) |
| DIN | Deutsches Institut für Normung (Germany) |
| Dj | Double junction |
| DOD | Depth of discharge |
| DOE | Department of Energy (USA) |
| DOS | Density of states |
| DR | Directional solidification |
| DTA | Differential thermal analysis |
| DTI | Department of Trade and Industry (UK) |
| DSC or DSSC | Dye sensitised solar cell |
| EB | Electron beam |
| EBIC | Electron-beam induced current |
| EFG | Edge-defined film fed growth |
| EHL | Environmental Health Laboratories (USA) |
| EHS | Environmental, health and safety |
| EMC | Electromagnetic continuous casting |
| ENS | Einrichtung zur Netzüberwachung mit zugerordnetem allpoligem Schaltorgan/Grid monitoring system with circuit breaker |
| EOL | End of life |
| EOT | Equation of time |
| EP | Electrical performance |
| EPA | Environmental Protection Agency (USA) |
| EPBT | Energy pay-back time |
| EPIA | European Photovoltaic Industry Association |
| EQE | External quantum efficiency |
| ESA | European Space Agency |
| ESD | Electrostatic discharge |
| ESRA | European Solar Radiation Atlas |
| ESTI | Eidgenössische Starkstrominspektorat Federal Electric Power Authority (Switzerland) |
| ETSU | Energy Technology Support Unit for the DTI (UK) |
| EURECA | European Retrievable Carrier |
| EVA | Ethylene vinyl acetate |
| FF | Fill factor |
| FSF | Front surface field |
| FZ | Floating zone |
| GAP | Global Approval Programme (see also PV GAP) (European Union) |
| GEO | Geostationary orbit |
| GDP | Gross domestic product |
| GMT | Greenwich mean time |
| HIT | Heterojunction with intrinsic thin layer (cell) |
| HTM | Hole transporting material |
| HOMO | Highest occupied molecular orbital |
| HV | High voltage |
| IBC | Interdigitated back contact |
| IEA | International Energy Agency |
| IEC | International Electrotechnical Commission |
| IEE | Institution of Electrical Engineers (UK) |
| IEEE | Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (USA) |
| INTA | Instituto Nacional de Técnica Aeroespacial (Spain) |
| IPP | Independent power producers (Portugal) |
| IQE | Internal quantum efficiency |
| ISO | International Standards Organisation |
| ISS | International Space Station |
| ITO | Indium-tin oxide |
| JIS | Japan Industry Standard |
| JPL | JetPropulsion Laboratory (USA) |
| JQA | Japan Quality Assurance Agency |
| LASS | Low angle silicon sheet |
| LAT | Local apparent time |
| LBIC | Light-beam induced current |
| LBSF | Local back-surface Field |
| LCA | Life cycle assessment |
| LCR | Load coverage rate |
| LED | Light emitting diode |
| LEO | Low earth orbit |
| LPP | Loss-of-load probability |
| LMT | Local mean time |
| LPP | Loss-of-power probability |
| LPCVD | Low pressure chemical vapour deposition |
| LPE | Liquid phase epitaxy |
| LPSP | Loss of power supply probability |
| LUMO | Lowest unoccupied molecular orbital |
| LV | Low voltage |
| MATE | Mars array technology experiment |
| MBE | Molecular beam epitaxy |
| mc | Multicrystalline |
| MDMO-PPV | Poly(2-methoxy-5-(3,7-dimethyloctyloxy) 1,4-phenylene vinylene |
| MEH-PPV | Poly (2-methoxy-5–2-ethyl-hexyloxy) 1,4-phenylene vinylene) |
| MEO | Medium-earth orbit |
| MG | Metallurgical grade |
| MINP | Metal-insulator np junction (cell) |
| MIS | Metal-insulator-semiconductor |
| MITI | Ministry of Trade and Industry (Japan) |
| Mj | Multijunction |
| MOCVD | Metalorganic chemical vapour deposition |
| MOS | Metal-oxide-semiconductor |
| MOVPE | Metalorganic vapour phase epitaxy |
| MPP | Maximum power point |
| MPPT | Maximum power point tracker |
| MSD | Mains monitoring units with allocated all-pole switching devices connected in series (also known as ENS) |
| MV | Medium voltage |
| NASA | National Aeronautics and Space Administration (USA) |
| NASDA | National Space Development Agency (Japan) |
| NEDO | New Energy and Industrial Technology Development Organisation (Japan) |
| NFPA | National Fire Protection Association (USA) |
| NIR | Near infrared |
| NREL | National Renewable Energy Laboratory (USA) |
| NRL | Naval Research Laboratory (USA) |
| NRS | Nonreflective |
| NSRDB | National Solar Radiation Data Base (USA) |
| O&M | Operation and maintenance |
| ODC | Ordered defect compound |
| OECD | Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development |
| OECO | Obliquely evaporated contact |
| OLED | Organic light-emitting diode |
| OCVD | Open-circuit voltage decay |
| OMeTAD | 2.2,7,7-tetrakis(N,N-di-p-methoxyphenylamine)-9,9-spirobifluorene |
| ÖVE | Östereichische Verband für Elektrotechnik (Austria) |
| OVPD | Organic vapour phase deposition |
| PC | Point contact |
| PCD | Photoconductive decay |
| PCBM | 1-(3-methoxycarbonyl)-propyl-1-phenyl-(6,6)C61 |
| PECVD | Plasma-enhanced chemical vapour deposition |
| PEDOT:PSS | Poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiopene):poly(styrene sulfonate) |
| PERL | Passivated emitter, rear locally diffused (cell) |
| PESC | Passivated emitter solar cell |
| PET | Poly(ethylene terephalate) |
| PPV | Poly-phenylene vinylene |
| PR | Performance ratio |
| PRT | Platinum resistance thermometer |
| PSH | Peak solar hours |
| PTC | Performance test conditions |
| PV | Photovoltaic, photovoltaics |
| PVD | Physical vapour deposition |
| PVGAP | PV Global Approval Programme |
| PVPS | Photovoltaic Power Systems (Programme) |
| PVUSA | Photovoltaics for Utility Scale Applications |
| QE | Quantum efficiency |
| QSSPC | Quasi-steady-state photoconductance (method) |
| QSSVoc | Quasi-steady state open circuit voltage (method) |
| R&D | Research and development |
| RES | Renewable energy sources |
| RF | Radio frequency |
| RGS | Ribbon growth on substrate |
| RH | Relative humidity |
| ROCOF | Rate of change of frequency |
| ROW | Rest of the world |
| RTCVD | Rapid thermal chemical vapour deposition |
| RTD | Research and technology development |
| RTP | Rapid thermal process |
| SA | Solar array |
| SCA | Solar cell assembly |
| SCCE | Solar cell calibration experiment |
| SDL | Surface defect layer |
| SELF | Solar Electric Light Fund |
| SEM | Scanning electron microscopy |
| SG | Specific gravity |
| SRH | Shockley–Read–Hall |
| SHS | Solar home system(s) |
| SIPOS | Semi-insulating polysilicon |
| Sj | Single junction |
| SLI | Starting, lighting, and ignition |
| SMUD | Sacramento Municipal Utility District |
| SOC | State of charge |
| SR | String ribbon |
| SR | Spectral response |
| SRC | Standard reporting conditions |
| SSP | Space solar power |
| STC | Standard test conditions |
| STAR | Surface texture and enhanced absorption with back reflector |
| SRV | Surface recombination velocity |
| SWE | Staebler-Wronski effect |
| SWS | Secondary working standard |
| S-Web | Supporting web |
| TJ | Tandem junction |
| TJ | Triple junction |
| TC | Technical committee |
| TCO | Transparent conducting oxide |
| TEC | Thermal expansion coefficient |
| TEM | Transmission electron microscopy |
| TPV | Thermophotovoltaics |
| TTV | Total thickness variation |
| UCPTE | Union for the Coordination of Production and Transmission of Electricity (USA) |
| UL | Underwriters Laboratory (USA) |
| UT | Ultrathin |
| UV | Ultraviolet |
| VDE | Verband der Elektrotechnik, Elektronik und Informationstechnik (Germany) |
| VdEW | Verband der Elektrizitätswirtschaft (Germany) |
| VHF | Very high frequency |
| VSE | Verband Schweizerische Elektrizitätswerke (Switzerland) |
| WCP | Wiring collecting panels |
| WET | West European time |
| WMO | World Meteorological Organisation |
| XRD | X-ray diffraction |
| x-Si | Crystalline silicon |
| XTE | X-ray timing explorer |
| YAG | Yttrium aluminium garnet |
| ZMR | Zone-melt recrystalization |
