photovoltaic effect

noun Physics.

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.

Origin of photovoltaic effect

First recorded in 1955–60

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British Dictionary definitions for photovoltaic effect

photovoltaic effect

noun

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

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