Scientists from the Universities of Sheffield and Cambridge have published research on manufacturing ultra-cheap solar energy panels for large-scale domestic and industrial use. The idea is to use high-volume printing to produce nanoscale films of polymer solar cells. These cells are more than a 1,000 times thinner than the width of a human hair. While thin-film and other solar advancements aren’t new for us, the existing technology, with polymer solar cells, is only 7 to 8 % efficient. Scientists now want to develop solar cells that are 10% efficient, or even more.
The new study showed that when complex mixtures of molecules in solution are spread onto a surface, like varnishing a table-top, the different molecules separate to the top and bottom of the layer in a way that maximises the efficiency of the resulting solar cell.
Source: Tomorrow is greener
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