Transparent photovoltaics have yet to grace the face of your smartphone, but don’t give up hope UCLA researchers are working on a new see-through solar cell that’s showing potential. Using a new type of polymer solar cell, the team has been able to build a device that converts infrared light into electrical current.
Current prototypes boast 4 percent energy conversion efficiency at 66 percent transparency not crystal clear, but certainly clean enough to peer through.
According to a study in ACS Nano, the technology could be used in “building-integrated photovoltaics or integrated photovoltaic chargers for portable electronics.
” Translation? It could one day be used to build solar windows or better sun collecting smartphones. Don’t get too excited though, the technology still has a ways to go before any of these dreams come to fruition.
