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MIT's Mapdwell Maps Solar Potential for Entire Cities, Provides Cost-Benefit Analysis for Rooftops

Nations worldwide are increasingly embracing solar power as an alternative electricity source for homes, buildings, and even the grid. Since 2008, installed solar capacity in the United States alone has grown 17-fold, from 1.2 to 20 gigawatts (GW), according to the U.S. Department of Energy.

5 Feb 2016

Berkeley Lab-Led Research Team Simplifies Fabrication of Silicon Solar Cells

A team of researchers, led by the Berkeley Lab, have simplified the process of forming silicon solar cells, by applying a new blend of materials to a conventional design. Solar panels are arranged with solar cells that help to convert energy from the sun into electricity.

1 Feb 2016

Undoped Silicon Enables Simple, Efficient and Cheap Solar Cells

Scientists have simplified the method to manufacture silicon solar cells, that convert sunlight to electricity, with high efficiency by adding a new mix of materials to a typical design.

28 Jan 2016

imec Extends Collaboration with Total on Next Generation Silicon Solar Cells

Nanoelectronics research centre imec and global energy company Total, announced today that they have extended their collaboration to significantly increase the energy output of PV panels.

From IMEC 26 Jan 2016

New Solar-Panel Material Could Cut Photovoltaic Costs, Increase Efficiency above 20%

EPFL scientists have developed a solar-panel material that can cut down on photovoltaic costs while achieving competitive power-conversion efficiency of 20.2%.

19 Jan 2016

Warsaw Researchers Discover Simple and Effective Method for Producing Perovskite Solar Cells

Perovskites, substances that perfectly absorb light, are the future of solar energy. The opportunity for their rapid dissemination has just increased thanks to a cheap and environmentally safe method of production of these materials, developed by chemists from Warsaw, Poland.

18 Jan 2016

Researchers Observe Molecular Processes of Organic Solar Cells

A group of scientists at the Technical University of Munich (TUM) has successfully observed the unique molecular processes that occur during the production of organic solar cells.

13 Jan 2016

MIT Researchers Start Collaborative Research Effort to Bring Dawn-to-Dusk Solar Energy to Marketplace

Lighter, more efficient flat-plate solar cells are the goal of MIT researchers who kicked off a collaborative research effort Dec. 15 with a three-year, $3.5 million award under the Department of Energy’s ARPA-E program. Their aim is to bring the technology to the marketplace.

12 Jan 2016

Hybrid Silicon/Perovskite Tandem Solar Cells Hold Potential to Achieve Ultimate Efficiency of 30%

Imagine if your clothing could, on demand, release just enough heat to keep you warm and cozy, allowing you to dial back on your thermostat settings and stay comfortable in a cooler room. Or, picture a car windshield that stores the sun’s energy and then releases it as a burst of heat to melt away a layer of ice.

11 Jan 2016

NREL and CSEM Achieve Record 29.8% Conversion Efficiency with Dual-Junction Solar Cell

Scientists at the Energy Department's National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) and at the Swiss Center for Electronics and Microtechnology (CSEM) have jointly set a new world record for converting non-concentrated (1-sun) sunlight into electricity using a dual-junction III-V/Si solar cell.

8 Jan 2016