Can be used in windows to provide a shading the rooms while still generating electricity. Can exist in many different designs and colors to perfectly integrate into the house’s architecture.
The key component of the new modules is an organic dye which in combination with nanoparticles converts sunlight into electricity. Due to the small size of the nanoparticles, the modules are semi-transparent.
The new solar cells are being developed by members of the Fraunhofer Institute for Solar Energy Systems ISE, who will be presenting their new technology in Tokyo at Nanotech 2008, the world’s largest trade fair for nanotechnology.
“We don’t see the dye solar cell as being a rival to the conventional silicon cell,” says Fraunhofer ISE physicist Andreas Hinsch. The module prototypes only achieve an efficiency of four percent, which is not sufficient for rooftop applications in comparison to the performance of crystalline silicon solar cells. On the other hand, dye solar cells have a clear advantage when it comes to façade integration.
Source: Scienceworld
Tags: fraunhofer institute silicon solar cells solar energy systems silicon cell organic dye conventional silicon crystalline silicon
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I love this idea. The marriage of solar and design as well as a multi-purpose integration in commerical or residential buildings. I hope this invention is available soon. Anna http://www.green-talk.com