MIT Develops World's Thinnest Solar Cell, Just A Nanometer Thickness

A team of researchers at MIT has devised a technique to create solar cells that are just two molecules thick. Though the resultant solar cell can offer conversion efficiency of just 1-2 per cent, on placing multiple cells on top of the other, it is possible to increase the overall capacity, as compared to the conventional cells.

The latest trend in solar cell research has been on enhancing the conversion efficiency of solar cells. As a result, most solar cells can now generate 15 -20 per cent of the solar energy they get into electricity and the most efficient modules operate at 30 per cent efficiency level.

Researchers at MIT are now planning to turn their research into a new direction. They are now working on making the solar cells much thinner and use fewer materials. In their research paper titled “Extraordinary Sunlight Absorption and 1 nm-Thick Photovoltaics using Two-Dimensional Monolayer Materials” they have explained how they have developed a technique to create solar cells which are only two molecules thick- the thinnest possible solar cells reported so far.

As explained by Jeffrey Grossman, the Carl Richard Soderberg Associate Professor of Power Engineering at MIT, who authored the research paper along with Marco Bernardi, a postdoc in MIT’s Department of Materials Science, and Maurizia Palummo, a senior researcher visiting MIT from the University of Rome, described that they made use of nanotechnology to put a one-molecule thick layer of grapheme on top of a one-molecule thick layer of molybdenum disulphide to create a solar cell, which is just one nanometre thick.

Alta Devices is also working on developing an ultra-thin solar cell, and while their product also works at 30 per cent efficiency, it is 1,000 times thicker as compared to MIT’s cell. Also, the MIT cell will be cheap to produce as compared to Alta Devices’ which will be expensive as it involves the use of purified silicon.

Comments

Google to build green-roof California HQ

An image has been released of what looks set to become Google's new California HQ. Named Bay View, the nine-building campus is designed to maximize the likelihood of innovation-friendly chance encounters between the workforce. "You can't schedule innovation," Google's David Radcliffe tells Vanity Fair . "We want to create opportunities for people to have ideas and be able to turn to others right there and say, 'What do you think of this?'" This philosophy has fostered the design's angular office blocks, arranged back to back like nodding clergy. Despite the 1.1 million sq ft (102,000 sq m), employees will be a maximum of a 2.5-minute walk away from one another, Vanity Fair reports. Perhaps most remarkable is that this is Google's first build. In its 15-year history, Google has only ever occupied buildings previously used by others. "We've been the world's best hermit crabs: we've found other people's shell...

Nerf Vulcan Sentry Gun tracks targets and avoids friendly fire

Anyone who plays video games will know that few things protect an area like a well-placed sentry gun. In the real world, though, even a person's bedroom or office could use a little protection sometimes, which is why one designer has built the Nerf Vulcan Sentry Gun. Using a custom program and some servos, the sentry can automatically locate targets and unleash a stream of foam darts at over seven times the usual speed, while keeping its owner out of the crosshairs. Britt Liv Ulrike Michelsen, a chemical and biological engineering student from Germany, designed and constructed the sentry using mostly basic electronics and some plywood. This isn't the first time she's modified a Nerf gun, but building this robotic turret is arguably her most ambitious project to date. Luckily, the Nerf Vulcan already operates using an electric motor, so controlling the actual firing mechanism through a computer was just a matter of connecting it directly to an Arduino Uno and a laptop. ...

Wired wood: Gizmag's top ten wooden gadgets

We may be surrounded by gadgetry clad in shiny aluminum and gaudy plastic, but there's still a place left in the digital age for the comfort, simplicity and beauty of wood. Perhaps its the trend towards a "green" aesthetic or some deeper drive to get back to nature, but we've noticed a growing number of consumer electronics offerings in recent times that mesh circuit boards and synthetics with the wonders of wood. With this in mind, we've scoured our resources to come up with this list of Gizmag's top ten wooden gadgets. OOOMS Wooden USB Stick OOOMS, a design company based in The Netherlands, has created a USB stick that is made of … a stick. The creators literally pick up sticks, based on quality and appearance, and professionally work them into unique USB sticks that can hold from 2 to 16 Gb. Wooden Records Amanda Ghassaei has developed a laser cutting system that can carve music into a wooden record . After pulling audio from a WAV file with P...

ANBARASUASOKAN

Search This Blog