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A new world record for the conversion of solar energy to electricity using quantum dots:
The development of next generation solar power technology that has potential to be used as a flexible 'skin' over hard surfaces has moved a step closer, thanks to a significant breakthrough at The University of Queensland.
UQ researchers set a world record for the conversion of solar energy to electricity via the use of tiny nanoparticles called 'quantum dots', which pass electrons between one another and generate electrical current when exposed to solar energy in a solar cell device.
The development represents a significant step towards making the technology commercially-viable and supporting global renewable energy targets.
Professor Lianzhou Wang, who led the breakthrough, said: "Conventional solar technologies use rigid, expensive materials. The new class of quantum dots the university has developed are flexible and printable.
"This opens up a huge range of potential applications, including the possibility to use it as a transparent skin to power cars, planes, homes and wearable technology. Eventually it could play a major part in meeting the United Nations' goal to increase the share of renewable energy in the global energy mix."
Professor Wang's team set the world record for quantum dot solar cell efficiency by developing a unique surface engineering strategy. Overcoming previous challenges around the fact that the surface of quantum dots tend to be rough and unstable—making them less efficient at converting solar into electrical current.
"This new generation of quantum dots is compatible with more affordable and large-scale printable technologies," said Professor Wang.
Mengmeng Hao et al, Ligand-assisted cation-exchange engineering for high-efficiency colloidal Cs1−xFAxPbI3 quantum dot solar cells with reduced phase segregation, Nature Energy (2020). DOI: 10.1038/s41560-019-0535-7
(Score: 4, Insightful) by Immerman on Wednesday February 26 2020, @03:08PM
>As long as you cannot give a satisfyingly positive answer to both questions, you can be doing any number of "significant steps towards making the technology commercially-viable" while in reality only pounding quantum sand.
Yep - no sense climbing a flight of stairs if that first step won't get you where you're going. </sarcasm>