Solar Cell

A new type of hybrid solar energy converter can use energy from the Sun to create both electricity and steam. The device reportedly has high efficiency and runs at low cost, allowing industry to make use of a wider spectrum of solar energy.

An international team of scientists has created a new type of solar flow battery that’s efficient and long-lasting. The device is made up of a silicon/perovskite tandem solar cell, paired with a redox flow battery, with organic chemical electrolytes.

Scientists have long hoped to give plastic conductive properties by adding extra materials, and one team of researchers has now put forward a promising possibility its hoped could find uses in large touchscreens or window-mounted solar cells.

Perovskite is emerging as a promising material for solar cells, but it has some durability problems. Now, engineers have developed a new electrode that could make them more stable, using a protective layer of "graphene armor."

Solar-to-hydrogen cells can convert solar energy directly into hydrogen without needing an external electrolyzer, and an exciting new design out of the Australian National University has achieved record efficiency levels using low-cost materials.

Graphene may be a versatile material, but it remains tricky to produce in large amounts. Now, an MIT team has found a new way to make large sheets of graphene in a roll-to-roll process, by depositing it onto a substrate that can easily be peeled off.

Perovskites are synthetic compounds that – in some ways – are a better alternative to the silicon semiconductors currently utilized in solar cells. And while there are still some hurdles to be crossed, a new application process could soon help them enter widespread use.

Quantum dots have shown promise in solar cells. Now, researchers at Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL) have developed a new type of quantum dot solar cell that isn’t made with the toxic elements found in most, while maintaining efficiency.

It sounds counterintuitive to put solar cells indoors, but there’s light energy inside that’s largely going to waste. Now a team of engineers has created flexible perovskite solar cells with the highest efficiency of any indoor flexible solar cells.

Perovskite makes for efficient solar cells, but it’s a bit too fragile. Now, a team has found that adding one bulky molecule can stabilize the material, making it stackable in layers and opening up its usefulness in solar cells and other electronics.

Windows capable of harvesting energy from the sun have been on the horizon for a number of years, but they're yet to help cut down a building's energy costs. A new development from Australian researchers may change that.

Solar cells are constantly improving on the road to maximum efficiency. Now, three records have been broken by two different devices, including one that pushes the highest overall solar conversion efficiency towards the 50-percent mark.