Solar Cell

Would transparent solar cells installed in greenhouse roofs deprive plants of vital sunlight? To find out, researchers at North Carolina State University grew lettuce under various wavelengths of light, and found that the plants did just fine.

Picture solar panels, and you’re most likely picturing a solid square slab. But the tech is becoming more flexible, and now engineers at Pusan National University in Korea have developed prototype solar cells that are fully foldable.

A touch of chili peppers can spice up just about any dish – and maybe, it turns out, even solar cells. Researchers have now found that adding a sprinkle of capsaicin to a perovskite precursor can improve the efficiency of solar cells.

Silicon has long been the gold standard for solar cells, but it’s approaching its limit. Perovskite is emerging as a promising partner, and now engineers have achieved a new efficiency record for this kind of tandem solar cell – almost 30 percent.

One drawback of current perovskite solar technology is the instability of the cells, a problem which scientists have taken a step toward addressing with a new design that incorporates an old organic pigment to keep things in working order.

Perovskite solar cells are rapidly catching up to silicon in efficiency, but continue to lag behind in production speed. Now Stanford has developed a new method of making perovskite solar cells at up to 40 ft per minute – even faster than silicon.

A simple home test for breast cancer and a UV energy-harvesting window made of recycled materials are the big winners of this year’s James Dyson Awards. The annual competition encourages university students to develop innovative solutions to problems.

Perovskite solar is gaining much attention in solar cell research, but there are greener alternatives in the works. Scientists have just uncovered a new use for these materials, learning they can harvest energy from indoor lighting with high efficiency.

In summer months sunlight comes with an unwanted side order of heat. Now, researchers have developed windows that can change color automatically when heated by sunlight, to keep buildings cool – and to top it off, they’re solar panels as well.

New ultrathin solar cells boast a few advantages over others of their type. They're more efficient, made using more common elements, and can be inkjet-printed onto surfaces, making them light and flexible enough to power wearable electronics.

Researchers have developed a photovoltaic device that has an external quantum efficiency of 132 percent. This impossible-sounding feat was achieved using nanostructured black silicon, and could represent a major breakthrough for solar cells.

In a first, perovskite and organic solar cells have been tested in space. Not only did they perform well, but they’re much thinner and lighter than the silicon cells currently used and were even able to absorb diffuse light reflected back from Earth.