Post by account_disabled on Mar 6, 2024 5:01:20 GMT -5
New solar materials could usher in an ultra-thin, lightweight solar panel.
Researchers at Stanford University are developing a new efficient ultra-thin solar panel material that is fifteen times thinner than paper, a press release reveals.
Made from transition metal chalcogenides (TMD), the materials have the potential to absorb a higher level of sunlight than other solar materials while providing an incredibly lightweight alternative to silicon-based solar panels.
Looking for alternatives to silicon
The researchers are part of a concerted effort within the scientific community to find alternative solar panel materials to silicon. Silicon is by far the most common material used for solar panels, but it is heavy and rigid, meaning it is not particularly suitable for lightweight applications required for airplanes, spacecraft, electric vehicles, or even portable devices.
The Stanford team of researchers was able to develop an active matrix just a few hundred nanometers thick. They summarized their new findings in a paper published in Nature Communications. The new array includes the TMD as well as gold contacts encased in a layer of conductive graphene that is just one atom thick. All of that is then placed inside a flexible, anti-reflective polymer that improves light absorption. The TMD cells themselves are less than six microns thick.
"Imagine an autonomous drone that is powered by an ultra-thin solar panel on the top of its wing that is times thinner than a piece of paper," said Koosha Nassiri Nazif, co-lead author of the study. "That's the promise of TMDs."
Unlocking the potential of TMDs
Until now, researchers have struggled to fully unlock the potential of TMDs. There are obstacles when it comes to manufacturing and transporting the incredibly lightweight material without damaging it. However, the main problem is that silicon solar panels currently convert about percent of sunlight into electricity, while TMDs only convert about percent. Although TMDs have great potential to enable a wide range of solar applications, researchers will need to greatly improve their efficiency.
Stanford's new ultra-thin solar panel helps close that gap by achieving a power conversion efficiency of percent. However, the crucial point in the researchers' new paper is that they believe they can optimize their material to achieve an efficiency of percent, meaning it would be comparable to the best solar panels on the market today. The prototype material also achieved a power-to-weight ratio times greater than any TMD developed so far.
“Silicon represents percent of the current solar market, but it is far from perfect. We need new materials that are lightweight, flexible and, frankly, more environmentally friendly,” said Krishna Saraswat, lead author of the paper.
TMDs do not contain toxic chemicals and are also biocompatible, meaning they can be used for wearable devices that come into contact with human skin. However, their biggest benefit is the fact that they are incredibly thin and flexible, making them cheaper while still being able to be molded into irregular shapes.
For electric vehicles, this new ultra-thin solar panel could equate to much greater range. Such a light material could greatly boost the development of solar electric vehicles (SEVs), such as the Lightyear One, which promises to run for months without being plugged into a charger thanks to its solar panels. The material could be used to charge any number of objects, including small portable devices, robots, airplanes and spacecraft.
Researchers at Stanford University are developing a new efficient ultra-thin solar panel material that is fifteen times thinner than paper, a press release reveals.
Made from transition metal chalcogenides (TMD), the materials have the potential to absorb a higher level of sunlight than other solar materials while providing an incredibly lightweight alternative to silicon-based solar panels.
Looking for alternatives to silicon
The researchers are part of a concerted effort within the scientific community to find alternative solar panel materials to silicon. Silicon is by far the most common material used for solar panels, but it is heavy and rigid, meaning it is not particularly suitable for lightweight applications required for airplanes, spacecraft, electric vehicles, or even portable devices.
The Stanford team of researchers was able to develop an active matrix just a few hundred nanometers thick. They summarized their new findings in a paper published in Nature Communications. The new array includes the TMD as well as gold contacts encased in a layer of conductive graphene that is just one atom thick. All of that is then placed inside a flexible, anti-reflective polymer that improves light absorption. The TMD cells themselves are less than six microns thick.
"Imagine an autonomous drone that is powered by an ultra-thin solar panel on the top of its wing that is times thinner than a piece of paper," said Koosha Nassiri Nazif, co-lead author of the study. "That's the promise of TMDs."
Unlocking the potential of TMDs
Until now, researchers have struggled to fully unlock the potential of TMDs. There are obstacles when it comes to manufacturing and transporting the incredibly lightweight material without damaging it. However, the main problem is that silicon solar panels currently convert about percent of sunlight into electricity, while TMDs only convert about percent. Although TMDs have great potential to enable a wide range of solar applications, researchers will need to greatly improve their efficiency.
Stanford's new ultra-thin solar panel helps close that gap by achieving a power conversion efficiency of percent. However, the crucial point in the researchers' new paper is that they believe they can optimize their material to achieve an efficiency of percent, meaning it would be comparable to the best solar panels on the market today. The prototype material also achieved a power-to-weight ratio times greater than any TMD developed so far.
“Silicon represents percent of the current solar market, but it is far from perfect. We need new materials that are lightweight, flexible and, frankly, more environmentally friendly,” said Krishna Saraswat, lead author of the paper.
TMDs do not contain toxic chemicals and are also biocompatible, meaning they can be used for wearable devices that come into contact with human skin. However, their biggest benefit is the fact that they are incredibly thin and flexible, making them cheaper while still being able to be molded into irregular shapes.
For electric vehicles, this new ultra-thin solar panel could equate to much greater range. Such a light material could greatly boost the development of solar electric vehicles (SEVs), such as the Lightyear One, which promises to run for months without being plugged into a charger thanks to its solar panels. The material could be used to charge any number of objects, including small portable devices, robots, airplanes and spacecraft.