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Transparent solar cells let windows generate electricity


July 24, 2012

By Deborah Netburn

Read More: http://www.latimes.com/business/tech...&dlvrit=104530

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Scientists at UCLA have invented a thin, transparent solar cell that can turn the energy of the sun into electricity, while still allowing visible light to stream through it.

- The transparent solar cell is made out of a plastic that absorbs invisible infared light while letting most visible light pass through. Additionally, even the metal that carries the charge out of the cell is transparent. In collaboration with Paul S. Weiss, director of CNSI, Yang was able to install a silver nano wire that served as the conductive metal that is essentially invisible. The result? A solar panel that is 70% transparent to the human eye.

- There is a catch, of course: Transparent solar cells are not nearly as efficient as opaque ones. Yang said that by solving the visibility problem, 30% of a cell's energy-absorbing capability had to be sacrificed. The good news is that the process is very economical, and the material can be fabricated as a liquid that can be sprayed on a surface, much in the same way that car factories spray paint onto automobiles.

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A piece of clear glass, left, is compared to a transparent solar cell, right, developed by UCLA professor Yang Yang and his team. (Courtesy of UCLA / July 24, 2012)