Plasmonic device converts light into electricity

(PhysOrg.com) -- While the most common device for converting light into electricity may be photovoltaic (PV) solar cells, a variety of other devices can perform the same light-to-electricity conversion, such as solar-thermal ...

Inverted polymer solar cell efficiency sets world record

(Phys.org)—For many years, researchers have strived to reach the goal of 10% efficiency for polymer-based organic photovoltaic (OPV) solar cells, a target widely considered to be the threshold for commercial applications. ...

A new world record for solar cell efficiency

In a remarkable feat, scientists at Empa, the Swiss Federal Laboratories for Materials Science and Technology, have developed thin film solar cells on flexible polymer foils with a new record efficiency of 20.4 percent for ...

Thin-skinned solar panels printed with inkjet

Solar cells can now be made so thin, light and flexible that they can rest on a soap bubble. The new cells, which efficiently capture energy from light, could offer an alternative way to power novel electronic devices, such ...

Solar-thermal flat-panels that generate electric power

(PhysOrg.com) -- High-performance nanotech materials arrayed on a flat panel platform demonstrated seven to eight times higher efficiency than previous solar thermoelectric generators, opening up solar-thermal electric power ...

Researchers discover source for generating 'green' electricity

University of Minnesota engineering researchers in the College of Science and Engineering have recently discovered a new alloy material that converts heat directly into electricity. This revolutionary energy conversion method ...

Solving the solar cell power conversion dilemma

(PhysOrg.com) -- "There is a lot of interest in creating more efficient solar cells that are also simpler than many of the designs common now," Wladek Walukiewicz tells PhysOrg.com. "We think that, through the mixing of certain ...

page 1 from 6