Breakthrough allows inexpensive solar cells to be fabricated from any semiconductor
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Two approaches to engineering the screening properties of SFPV electrodes - fingered electrodes on the left, graphene electrodes on the right
How a solar cell works (Image: Brian Dodson)
A new technique allows photovoltaic solar cells to be produced using any semiconductor (Photo: Shutterstock)
Article Summary
Despite their ability to generate clean, green electricity, solar panels aren't as commonplace as the could be. The main sticking point, of course, is price. Due to their need for relatively expensive semiconductor materials, conventional solar cells don't yet have a price-efficiency combination that can compete with other sources of electricity. Now Profs. Alex Zettl and Feng Wang of Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory and the University of California at Berkeley have developed seriously unconventional solar cell technology that allows virtually any semiconductor material to be used to create photovoltaic cells.
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