Articles tagged with Photovoltaics
Researchers at the Institute for Basic Science discovered a carrier multiplication process in 2D semiconductors that could improve the efficiency of solar cells. The phenomenon is more efficient in 2D materials than in bulk semiconductors and has the potential to increase the maximum power conversion efficiency up to 46%
A research team at Kanazawa University investigated the molecular mechanisms behind organic solar cell damage from sunlight. They found that UV light causes fragile molecules to degrade, leading to reduced efficiency. This study may lead to the development of more robust and efficient solar cells.
Researchers have developed ternary organic solar cells with non-fullerene electron acceptors or polymer donors, improving spectral response and photon-harvesting capabilities. The addition of these third components enhances energy and charge transfer, leading to increased efficiency and potentially semi-transparent solar cells.
Researchers at OIST have characterized the structural defects that prompt ion movement in perovskite materials, which can destabilize the device. The study's findings may inform future engineering approaches to improve perovskite solar cells' performance and stability.
Scientists from NTU and UG have developed a method to identify the best pairs of materials in next-generation perovskite solar cells, which can capture more electricity. The new technique uses extremely fast lasers to observe how an energy barrier forms when perovskite is joined with a material that extracts electrical charges.
Arizona State University received five prestigious Department of Energy awards totaling $9.8 million to advance solar energy research and development. The funding will support projects to lower solar electricity costs, boost manufacturing, and make solar systems more resilient.
A new solar power generator prototype developed by Ben-Gurion University of the Negev and US research teams will be deployed on a NASA flight to the International Space Station. The compact system could provide unprecedented watt per kilogram of power, critical to lowering costs for private space flight.
Researchers at Lund University have found that 30% of energy in certain light-absorbing iron molecules disappears unexpectedly. To improve efficiency, they aim to close this loophole by exploring methods for extracting all the energy from these molecules.
A new type of perovskite material eliminates lead and improves stability for next-generation solar cells. These materials have been shown to be as much as 28% efficient compared to current panels capturing only 15-18%. The new organic-inorganic hybrid structure also offers a blueprint for other functional hybrid materials.
Scientists at Cambridge discovered that perovskite materials can be more efficient when their chemical compositions are less ordered, simplifying production processes and lowering costs. This is achieved by creating areas with different compositions that trap energized charge carriers, improving solar cell efficiency.
Rice University scientists have overcome a major hurdle keeping perovskite-based solar cells from achieving mainstream use by engineering defects and retaining efficiency. They replaced lead with indium, resulting in cells that can be made in open air and last for months.
Scientists visualize grain structure of perovskite crystals without damaging solar cells, revealing misorientation as primary contributor to strain buildup. The discovery enables researchers to explore strategies to reduce or eliminate non-radiative recombination, a major efficiency-dampening factor in next-gen solar cells.
Researchers at Michigan State University have developed a new approach to detect and attack cancer cells using light-activated fluorescent dyes. The breakthrough utilizes technology traditionally reserved for solar power, offering promising results in breast, lung, and skin cancer cell lines and mouse models.
A Swansea-led project aims to provide clean, affordable and reliable power to local communities in developing countries using perovskite solar cells. The £800,000 funding will support the construction of demonstrator buildings and collaboration with experts from five countries.
Researchers at Penn State have successfully increased the efficiency of perovskite solar cells by adding the protein bacteriorhodopsin, boosting it from 14.5% to 17%. This breakthrough could lead to more environmentally friendly and cost-effective bioperovskite solar cell technology.
Researchers at the University of Würzburg have developed two new spectroscopic methods to study energy transport on the nanoscale. By deciphering the behavior of double-walled nanotubes, they aim to improve artificial light-harvesting antennas and photovoltaics.
Researchers found that functionalized carbon nanotubes enhance the interaction between perovskite and CNTs, improving their performance and stability. The study revealed a self-recrystallization process in perovskite at room temperature, which can be accelerated by frequent measurements but degrades stability.
Researchers achieved high power conversion efficiencies in organic solar cells by designing a highly crystalline donor-acceptor interface. The V_oc was found to increase with increasing acceptor layer crystallinity, resulting in reduced energy loss and improved efficiency.
A new research project will improve solar cell technology and explore new uses for photovoltaic devices. The collaboration includes five universities in three countries, with a focus on additive manufacturing and 3D printing for low-cost solar cell production.
Researchers from Tokyo Tech and Kanazawa University develop an eco-friendly device using solar cells to catalyze electrochemical oxidation reactions. The device, which uses organic materials, achieves high efficiency by directly utilizing photogenerated holes in chemical reactions.
Scientists from NUST MISIS and University of Rome Tor Vergata developed a new approach to design perovskite solar cells using MXene, increasing efficiency by more than 25% compared to original prototypes. The innovative material enhances charge extraction through interfaces.
A new study by MIT researchers suggests that solar panels with lifetimes as short as 10 years can make economic sense for grid-scale installations. The team analyzed three types of solar installations and found that the levelized cost of electricity, not just the panel's lifetime, determines economic viability.
Researchers create standardized way to quantify and compare solar power variations influenced by cloud coverage, time of day, and dust particles. This method may help optimize photovoltaic farms and inform engineering and policy for more efficient solar power production.
The DGIST research team has developed a flexible CZTSSe thin-film solar cell with an unprecedented efficiency of 11.4%, breaking the previous record. This achievement enables mass production using eco-friendly materials, making it easier to commercialize and apply in various fields like wearables, buildings, and automobiles.
Researchers have demonstrated a ternary organic solar cell with a power conversion efficiency of 14.3%, beating the typical drop in fill factor upon increasing the thickness of the active layer. The addition of PC61BM improves hole and electron mobilities, facilitating charge transport and leading to improved efficiencies.
Researchers at Linköping University have developed organic solar cells that can harness indoor light to produce electricity. The cells achieve high energy efficiency, with some variants converting up to 26.1% of ambient light into electricity.
Researchers designed a quinoxaline-based acceptor that enables efficient organic solar cells with low energy losses. The devices achieved high power conversion efficiencies and improved short-circuit current, fill factor, and open-circuit voltage.
Researchers at Kaunas University of Technology and Helmholtz Zentrum Berlin created a tandem perovskite-CIGS solar cell with an efficiency of 23.26%, shattering the previous record value. The cell's intermediate layer of organic molecules enables self-assembling on rough surfaces.
Researchers develop a low-cost thermoelectric generator that harnesses temperature differences to produce renewable electricity at night, when solar power is not available. The device can generate up to 25 milliwatts of energy per square meter and has the potential to be scaled for practical use.
Researchers at the University of Warwick have discovered that organic solar cells only need 1% of their surface area to be electrically conductive, opening up possibilities for composite materials and improved device performance. This breakthrough could enable flexible solar cells to become a commercial reality sooner.
A study by Aalto University and international partners predicts a 35-fold increase in global cooling demand by the end of the century, driven by rising temperatures and economic prosperity. The researchers estimate that solar power can meet this growing demand, with the potential to power entire countries like France or India.
Researchers found agrivoltaics significantly impacted air temperatures, direct sunlight and atmospheric demand for water, leading to improved crop growth and reduced water loss. The system also increased energy production efficiency by cooling solar panels with crops underneath.
A new algorithm developed by University of Waterloo researchers increases the efficiency of solar photovoltaic systems and reduces power waste, with potential savings of up to 138.9 kWh/year for small home-use systems. The technique could lead to substantial reductions in emissions from large-scale solar farms.
A team of researchers at the University of California, Berkeley, has developed a microwave-sized water harvester that can pull water directly from the air 24/7. The harvester uses a highly porous metal-organic framework to capture and condense water molecules from ambient air, even in low-humidity conditions.
Researchers at Tohoku University developed a new method to quantify the efficiency of crystal semiconductors, a crucial step towards creating more efficient light-emitting diodes (LEDs) and solar cells. The method uses photoluminescence spectroscopy to detect the emitted light energy, providing a unique indicator of the crystal's quality.
Researchers at Columbia University have developed a new design rule for generating excitons in organic molecules. This innovation enables the creation of more efficient solar cells and opens up new avenues for applications in fields such as photocatalysis, sensors, and imaging.
A Chinese-German team developed a way to boost electric conductivity of organic solar cells, increasing their performance. By doping metal oxide interlayer with modified organic dye, both efficiency and stability were improved.
Researchers at the University of Warwick have discovered a way to make patterned films of silver and copper without using toxic chemicals or expensive methods. The new method uses an extremely thin printed layer of organofluorine to prevent metal deposition, making it more sustainable and potentially cheaper.
Heidelberg University physicists develop a novel spectroscopic method to map the energetic landscape inside solar cells based on organic materials. This technique enables scientists to study physical principles and better understand processes such as energetic losses with extreme precision.
The University of Toledo has been awarded a $7.4 million contract to develop solar technology that is lightweight, flexible, highly efficient and durable in space. The goal is to provide power for space vehicles using sunlight, reducing the need for liquid fuels and battery storage.
Agricultural lands are the most productive places for solar power, according to an Oregon State University study. The researchers found that converting less than 1% of land to solar panels would be sufficient to fulfill global electric energy demand.
Researchers at Siberian Federal University and Royal Institute of Technology discover palladium diselenide, a promising material for more efficient solar cells. The material can absorb solar energy more efficiently than silicon-based materials, increasing the efficiency of solar cells.
Current artificial leaves convert only 15% of inhaled CO2 into fuel and release 85%, while new bipolar membrane technology increases efficiency to 60-70%
Agrivoltaics combines solar panels and agriculture to create a more efficient and sustainable system. This practice reduces evaporation of irrigation waters in summer and increases photosynthesis, leading to improved crop growth and reduced water usage.
Researchers from the University of Warwick have discovered that deformations and defects in solar cell structures can prevent photo-excited carriers from recombining, leading to enhanced conversion efficiency. This finding has potential applications in improving UV light sensor sensitivity and increasing solar cell efficiency.
A team of engineers at Washington University in St. Louis has found a more stable, less toxic semiconductor for solar applications, made up of potassium, barium, tellurium, bismuth and oxygen (KBaTeBiO6). The new compound has a band gap of 1.88 eV, which is close to the halide perovskites, making it promising for solar cell applications.
A study by KU Leuven researchers has successfully stabilized perovskites, a promising type of semiconductor material for harnessing solar energy. By binding the crystals to a glass substrate and heating them to high temperatures, the black perovskite state is achieved, enabling efficient sunlight absorption and electricity generation.
Researchers from UCLouvain have discovered a new material, LiTi2(PS4)3 or LTPS, which shows the highest lithium diffusion coefficient ever measured in a solid. This discovery is an important step towards developing all-solid-state batteries with improved performance.
Researchers discovered 2D perovskite materials with metal-like conductive edges and insulating cores, improving optoelectronic performance. The findings boost the potential of these materials for innovative solar cells and nanoelectronics.
Researchers at KAUST have developed a synthetic approach to generate homogeneous and defect-free crystals that could fast-track the commercialization of perovskite solar cells. The new single-crystal films exhibit lower defect density and higher charge-carrier diffusion lengths, leading to high-quality solar cells with a maximum power-...
A multifunctional device captures heat from photovoltaic solar panels to produce fresh water, exceeding traditional solar stills' output. The device's electricity output remains unaffected, demonstrating a promising solution for sustainable global development.
A team of researchers at HZB has investigated the fundamental photochemical processes around metal atoms and its ligands in transition-metal dyes. They found that charge carriers are not spatially separated as previously assumed, but rather undergo a rapid recombination process.
A team of UT Austin chemists has received a $1 million grant to develop an innovative new coating for silicon-based solar cells that could increase their efficiency by up to 20%. The coating uses organic dyes to convert more sunlight into electricity, reducing heat losses and energy inefficiencies.
Researchers developed colorful perovskite solar cells by depositing a uniform perovskite thin layer into arrayed nanobowls acting as a structured electron transport layer. The cells exhibited high-efficiency photovoltaic performance with up to 16.94% efficiency, overcoming previous color limitations.
Researchers have demonstrated a method for getting high-energy photons to kick out two electrons instead of one, potentially breaking the theoretical solar-cell efficiency limit. The new approach could add several percentage points to the maximum output of conventional silicon cells.
Researchers at Aarhus University have developed an historically accurate solar energy model with global, regional and local level performance data made available via open license. The model will help in optimizing future sustainable energy systems by analyzing photovoltaic installations.
Scientists at the University of Delaware and Georgia Tech have won a grant to develop a new approach for improving the efficiency of PERC cells, which are designed to increase electricity generation in solar panels. The team aims to use sulfur and selenium to create more efficient silicon solar cells with improved voltage.
The RoboBee has successfully flown solo for the first time, with a wingspan of four wings allowing it to lift off without additional power. The vehicle's weight is 259 milligrams, making it the lightest untethered flight ever achieved.
Researchers at University of Surrey have developed a tin-based perovskite solar cell with 50% less lead, improving efficiency and reducing toxicity. The technology allows for affordable, flexible, and thin solar panels using low-cost materials.
Researchers developed a simpler approach to creating multi-junction solar cells using intermetallic bonding, avoiding significant expense and complexity. The technique enables the creation of high-efficiency solar cells with lower production costs.