This goes out to all those who are concerned about the high cost of solar panels. Researchers including Qiaoqiang Gan, University at Buffalo assistant professor of electrical engineering, are working towards a new generation of photovoltaic cells that are said to produce more power and cost less to manufacture than what’s available on the market today. What is being seen as one of the more promising efforts, which Gan is working on, involves the use of plasmonic-enhanced organic photovoltaic materials.
According to a report by ANI, these devices are less expensive and as they are made (or processed) in liquid form – can be utilised in a greater variety of surfaces. However, they differ from traditional solar cells in terms of energy production.
The report added: “Currently, solar power is produced with either thick polycrystalline silicon wafers or thin-film solar cells made up of inorganic materials such as amorphous silicon or cadmium telluride. Both are expensive to manufacture, Gan said.”
Gan added his research involves use of thin-film solar cells, too. But he is using organic materials such as polymers and small molecules that are carbon-based and less expensive.
“Compared with their inorganic counterparts, organic photovoltaics can be fabricated over large areas on rigid or flexible substrates potentially becoming as inexpensive as paint,” Gan explained. “The reference to paint does not include a price point but rather the idea that photovoltaic cells could one day be applied to surfaces as easily as paint is to walls,” he said.
