Scientists at the Massachusetts Institute of
Technology have successfully coated paper with a solar cell, part
of a suite of research projects aimed at energy
breakthroughs.
By Darren Quick -GizMag
May 6, 2010 - When most people
think of solar cells they picture the rigid glass panels that dot
rooftops around the world. But the solar cells of the future will
be much more adaptable, with researchers already succeeding in
creating highly absorbing flexible solar cells that can be printed
on plastic. Now researchers at MIT have gone one step further with
the development of the first solar cell printed on paper.
Printed solar cell
The solar cell coated paper was unveiled
at a press conference on Tuesday held to celebrate the opening of
the Eni-MIT Solar Frontiers Center (SFC) that was built to promote
research in advanced solar technologies. According to CNET, the new
solar cells are created by coating paper with organic semiconductor
material using a process similar to an inkjet printer.
The MIT researchers used carbon-based dyes
to "print" the cells, which are about 1.5 to 2 percent efficient at
converting sunlight to electricity. That falls well short of the
more than 40 percent efficiency record for a multi-junction solar
cell, or even the recent 19 percent efficiency record for silicon
ink-based solar cells. But Vladimir Bulovic, director of the
Eni-MIT Solar Frontiers Research Center, told CNET any material
could be used to print onto the paper solar cells if it was
deposited at room temperature.
It will still be some time before solar
cells can be installed with a staple gun, however, as the paper
variety are still in the research phase and are years from being
commercialized.
Eni-MIT Solar Frontiers Center (SFC)
The printed solar cells were just one of
the new technologies that have already resulted from the alliance
between MIT and Italian multinational oil and gas company Eni,
which was signed in February 2008. That alliance was followed by
the announcement in July 2008 of the Eni-MIT SFC that promotes
research in advanced solar technologies through projects ranging
from new materials to hydrogen production from solar energy.
The first two years of the Eni-MIT
alliance has also seen other significant breakthroughs
including:
- Construction of the first ultra-flexible solar cell;
- Advances in the production of virus-based metal contacts for
solar cells;
- Development of solar cells that mimic the photosynthetic
process;
- Advances in the understanding of how photosynthesis splits
water molecules;
- Construction of a prototype to maximize return on investment in
solar thermal plants using parabolic mirrors for sustainable
deployment of concentrating solar power.
The alliance between Eni and MIT has a
duration of five years and involves a financial commitment from Eni
for US$50 million in total, equally distributed between the Solar
Frontiers program and the MIT Energy Initiative (MITEI) - so we
should be able to look forward to even more breakthroughs in the
coming years.