Scalable Technique Producing Thin Lightweight Solar Cells That Turn Any Surface Into A Power Source (MIT)


A new technical paper titled "Printed Organic Photovoltaic Modules on Transferable Ultra-thin Substrates as Additive Power Sources" was published by researchers at MIT. "These durable, flexible solar cells, which are much thinner than a human hair, are glued to a strong, lightweight fabric, making them easy to install on a fixed surface. They can provide energy on the go as a wearable power ... » read more

Sputtered transparent electrodes for optoelectronic devices: Induced damage and mitigation strategies


Abstract: Summary "Transparent electrodes and metal contacts deposited by magnetron sputtering find applications in numerous state-of-the-art optoelectronic devices, such as solar cells and light-emitting diodes. However, the deposition of such thin films may damage underlying sensitive device layers due to plasma emission and particle impact. Inserting a buffer layer to shield against such da... » read more

Roadmap on organic–inorganic hybrid perovskite semiconductors and devices


ABSTRACT Metal halide perovskites are the first solution processed semiconductors that can compete in their functionality with conventional semiconductors, such as silicon. Over the past several years, perovskite semiconductors have reported breakthroughs in various optoelectronic devices, such as solar cells, photodetectors, light emitting and memory devices, and so on. Until now, perovskit... » read more

Power/Performance Bits: July 27


Amplifying light for lidar Engineers at University of Texas at Austin and University of Virginia developed a light detector that can amplify weak light signals and reduce noise to improve the accuracy of lidar. "Autonomous vehicles send out laser signals that bounce off objects to tell you how far away you are. Not much light comes back, so if your detector is putting out more noise than th... » read more

MOCVD Vendors Eye New Apps


Several equipment makers are developing or ramping up new metalorganic chemical vapor deposition (MOCVD) systems in the market, hoping to capture the next wave of growth applications in the arena. Competition is fierce among the various MOCVD equipment suppliers in the market, namely Aixtron, AMEC and Veeco. In addition, MOCVD equipment suppliers are looking for renewed growth in 2020, but b... » read more

Manufacturing Bits: March 5


WAAM process Thales Alenia Space, Cranfield University and Glenalmond Technologies have produced a prototype of a titanium pressure vessel for use in future space missions. The vessel is 1 meter in height and weighs 8.5kg. The titanium alloy is made using Cranfield’s additive technology, dubbed the Wire + Arc Additive Manufacturing (WAAM) process. Related to 3D printing technology, WA... » read more

System Bits: Jan. 29


Quantum physics make hybrid semiconductors glow Hybrid semiconducting materials have quantum properties capable of bringing significant changes to light-emitting diode lighting and monitors, along with photovoltaic solar cells, researchers at the Georgia Institute of Technology report. Physical chemists worked with halide organic-inorganic perovskite (HOIP), which combines a crystal lattice wi... » read more

Power/Performance Bits: Oct. 4


Solar battery Chemists at the University of Wisconsin–Madison and the King Abdullah University of Science and Technology in Saudi Arabia integrated solar cells with a large-capacity battery in a single device that eliminates the usual intermediate step of making electricity and, instead, transfers the energy directly to the battery's electrolyte. The team used a redox flow battery, or R... » read more

Power/Performance Bits: Aug. 2


From sun to hydrocarbon fuel Researchers at the University of Illinois at Chicago have engineered a solar cell that cheaply and efficiently converts atmospheric carbon dioxide directly into usable hydrocarbon fuel, using only sunlight for energy. Unlike conventional solar cells, which convert sunlight into electricity that must be stored in heavy batteries, the new device converts atmosph... » read more

Power/Performance Bits: May 10


Non-toxic thin-films A team at Australia's University of New South Wales achieved the world's highest efficiency using flexible solar cells that are non-toxic and cheap to make, with a record 7.6% efficiency in a 1cm2 area thin-film CZTS cell. Unlike its thin-film competitors, CZTS cells are made from abundant materials: copper, zinc, tin and sulphur, and has none of the toxicity problems... » read more

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