Imagine if the sun shining in through the windows could be used to power your home or business. With these new transparent solar panels, that dream could become a reality.
Transparent Solar Panels for Windows
The latest technology to enter the world of solar power is photovoltaic (PV) glass, also known as transparent solar panels. (1) This technology can be used to create windows that generate power where windows already exists, like businesses, our homes, car windows & sunroofs, and even smartphones (1)
Researchers at Michigan State University were the first to create this type of clear solar panel in 2014, and now researchers elsewhere in the United States and in Europe have been able to create fully transparent solar glass. (1
How They Work
The job of a solar panel is to absorb sunlight and convert that sunlight into power.
Until now, clear solar panels weren’t possible because the light passes right through the glass instead of being harnessed for energy production. (1)
This new technology can turn essentially any glass sheet or window into a PV cell. This cell selectively chooses a portion of the solar spectrum that the human eye can’t see, while allowing the rest of the light to pass through. It does this using a transparent luminescent solar concentrator (TLSC). (1)
The TLSC is made of organic salts that absorb specific invisible UV and infrared light wavelengths which are then made to glow as another invisible wavelength. That wavelength is then transferred to the edge of the window where thin PV solar strips convert it into energy. (1)
A New Breakthrough
This past August, Michigan University researchers set a new record for efficiency of color-neutral transparent solar cells. (2) Using an organic, carbon-based design, they achieved (2):
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