Scientists at Sandia National Laboratories in the USA have developed tiny glitter-sized solar cells they say could revolutionise the way solar energy is harvested.
The solar particles, fabricated of crystalline silicon, hold the potential for a variety of new applications. The “glitter” solar cells are 10 times thinner than conventional cells used in solar panels and use 100 times less the silicon, yet perform equally as well – currently around 14.9 percent efficiency. They are expected eventually to be less expensive and have greater efficiencies than the monocrystalline and polycrystalline cells currently commonly used in solar panels.
The shade tolerance of the new solar cells is also superior to conventional solar panels. Where unshaded glitter cells will keep cranking out electricity, many conventional panels lose massive amounts of power once shaded, in some cases failing to generate any sort of useful charge.
Each hexagonal cell is formed on silicon wafers and etched with electrical contacts prefabricated on each piece, by borrowing techniques from integrated circuits and MEMS.
Solar concentrators can also be placed directly over each glitter-sized cell to increase the number of photons arriving to be converted into electrons. High-voltage output is also possible directly from the modules because of the large number of cells in the array. This will reduce costs associated with wiring, due to reduced resistive losses at higher voltages.
Eventually the cells could be mass-produced and wrapped around curved and angular surfaces for building-integrated solar, tents and perhaps even clothing
Sandia lead investigator Greg Nielson said the research team has identified more than 20 benefits of scale for its micro-photovoltaic cells.
Source: Sandia National Laboratories.
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