photovoltaic effect

noun

, Physics.

1. the phenomenon in which the incidence of light or other electromagnetic radiation upon the junction of two dissimilar materials, as a metal and a semiconductor, induces the generation of an electromotive force.

photovoltaic effect

noun

1. the effect observed when electromagnetic radiation, esp visibile light from the sun, falls on a thin film of one solid deposited on the surface of a dissimilar solid producing a difference in potential between the two materials

Word History and Origins

Origin of photovoltaic effect¹

First recorded in 1955–60