24 h. ago Flexible tandem solar cells achieve 24.6% efficiency and withstand 3,000 bends in new study

Chinese scientists have found a way to make flexible tandem solar cells more efficient and durable by enhancing the adhesion of top layers to the bottom layers of the cell.

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39 h. ago Hybrid thermoelectric material achieves high efficiency by decoupling heat and charge transport

Thermoelectric materials enable the direct conversion of heat into electrical energy. This makes them particularly attractive for the emerging Internet of Things. For example, for the autonomous energy supply of microsensors and other tiny electronic components.

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67 h. ago Solar cell efficiency record achieved with tin halide perovskite

University of Queensland researchers have set a world record for solar cell efficiency with eco-friendly perovskite technology. A team led by Professor Lianzhou Wang has unveiled a tin halide perovskite (THP) solar cell capable of converting sunlight to electricity at a certified record efficiency of 16.65%. The research is published in the journal Nature Nanotechnology.

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67 h. ago Improving solar cell performance: The impact of Zr alloying on the engineering of BaHfS

Lead halide perovskite solar cells (LHPSCs) have rapidly gained prominence in the field of photovoltaics, boasting impressive power conversion efficiencies (PCEs) of up to 26.1% in single-junction devices. However, despite their high performance, these materials suffer from critical drawbacks, including degradation when exposed to moisture, oxygen, heat and ultraviolet light, as well as concerns regarding the toxicity of lead.

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9 d. ago Ultralight, flexible solar cells set new efficiency record at 23.64%

The Korea Institute of Energy Research has successfully developed ultra-lightweight flexible perovskite/CIGS tandem solar cells and achieved a power conversion efficiency of 23.64%, which is the world's highest efficiency of the flexible perovskite/CIGS tandem solar cells reported to date. The solar cells developed by the research team are extremely lightweight and can be attached to curved surfaces, making them a promising candidate for future applications in buildings, vehicles, aircraft, and more.

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2 w. ago Redox flow battery achieves energy efficiency of 87.9% and longer cycling life with new catalytic electrode

A team of materials scientists, chemical engineers, and environmental scientists affiliated with a host of institutions in China has developed a redox flow battery (RFB) with 87.9% energy efficiency, which can also last for 850 cycles. In their project, published in the journal Nature Communications, the group developed a new kind of catalytic electrode to improve the efficiency of the battery.

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2 w. ago Susceptible organic cations promote stability and efficiency in perovskite solar cells

Unlike conventional silicon-based solar cells, perovskite solar cells (PSCs) are not only thin and lightweight, but can also be seamlessly applied to curved surfaces, like building facades and vehicle roofs. What's more, they can be easily manufactured at room temperature using a solution process, leading to significantly reduced production costs.

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2 w. ago Organic solar cells face efficiency challenge due to slow current flow, researchers show

Researchers from the Chair of Optics and Photonics of Condensed Matter led by Prof. Dr. Carsten Deibel at the Chemnitz University of Technology and other partner institutions are currently working on solar cells made from novel organic semiconductors that can be produced using established printing processes. The scientists are collaborating interdisciplinarily to fundamentally understand these photovoltaic cells in order to further improve them.

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3 w. ago Exploring the effect of sulfur composition on tin sulfide for improving solar cell performance

Solar cells convert sunlight into clean energy—but if the solar cells themselves are made of toxic materials, it almost defeats the purpose. That's where tin sulfide (SnS) comes in. SnS is an environmentally friendly, naturally abundant, and relatively inexpensive semiconductor material that is a promising candidate for use in solar cells and thermoelectric conversion devices.

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3 w. ago Novel synthesis method boosts efficiency of organic solar cells

A research team led by Prof. Ge Ziyi from the Ningbo Institute of Materials Technology and Engineering from the Chinese Academy of Sciences has developed a low-crystallinity guest acceptor, D-IDT, using a tin-free direct C–H activation method that they incorporated as a third component into binary organic solar cells (OSCs).

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