Perovskite

One of the hindrances of solar power adoption, especially in cities, is where to install the chunky panels. Roofs? Skyscraper walls? Scarce open spaces? Researchers say they have solved this with solar cells so thin they can be installed on windows!

“Impure” lead-halide perovskite cells riddled with “imperfections” offer superb energy-harvesting efficiency that could beat industry-standard silicon cells. Best of all, they’re simple, cheap to manufacture, and could change the world.

High-efficiency, inexpensive LEDs and solar cells may arise from crystalline structures cheaper than silicon. A new vapor-based method works like superconductor manufacturing, creating perovskite layers at the Angstrom level for greater durability.

Since 2012, UK-based Power Roll has been working on a way to print low-cost solar film. It's now one crucial step closer to manufacturing its lightweight film, with a new design for its perovskite solar cells that should drop production costs.

Mercedes-Benz has unveiled a list of research programs and future technologies it's working on – including a "new kind of solar paint" it says could generate enough energy for up to 20,000 km (12,427 miles) of driving per year under ideal conditions.

From a New York rooftop in the 1800s to their first journey to space. From kidnappings and bribery to a world-changing mistake with an inkwell... Solar panels are one of humanity's greatest inventions, and their history is more fun than you thought.

Perovskite materials are poised to take on the reigning champion of solar, silicon, but their stability is holding them back. Now, scientists in China have developed a new type of hybrid perovskite that boasts a very good efficiency over a long life.

Perovskite is quickly gaining on silicon in the solar cell field, but it has one major drawback – durability. Now, a new treatment has been shown to keep perovskite solar cells working at 99% of their efficiency after 1,000 hours of use.

The dynamic duo of silicon and perovskite continue their rampage through the solar cell industry. Researchers at KAUST have developed a new silicon/perovskite tandem solar cell with a record-breaking efficiency.

The humble X-ray may have received a long-overdue upgrade thanks to the development of a highly sensitive, printable X-ray detector that can operate over a wide range of energy levels, with potential in a wide range of real-world applications.

Perovskites are one of the most promising new materials for solar cell technology. Now engineers at the University of Rochester have developed a way to more than triple the material’s efficiency by adding a layer of reflective silver underneath it.

Perovskite and silicon are proving to be a formidable duo in the world of solar cells, and now they’ve hit a new record efficiency. A team at Helmholtz Zentrum Berlin (HZB) have developed solar cells with an efficiency of over 32%.