Tigo's Optimization works through shade and mismatch mitigation. Our module-level power electronics (MLPE) help to increase the production of a system and ensure a maximum power yield (from shaded modules or other forms of panel mismatch).
When a solar module is shaded (either partially or fully), the internal panel bypass diodes redirect the current around the shaded cells within the module, which saves the panel's voltage but reduces the current output (causing string impedance). Once shading affects a PV Module in this way, it becomes the weakest link in the chain.
Tigo optimizers recover lost energy by increasing the panel's current and, thus, encouraging more energy production from the string. It does this by sensing reductions in current caused by shading and adjusting the module's outward current to reflect the correct “virtual” resistance for each module. This prevents the lower-producing modules from dragging down the production of the higher-producing modules in the string.
For more information about this technology, see:
Optimization with Predictive IV and Impedance Matching