Transparent Solar Cells Could One Day Be Installed On Windows

In the future there is a very good chance our homes and offices could be powered by renewable sources of energy, such as solar. However the way most solar panels are designed these days could stand to use some improvement, such as their placement and their design, where right now it isn’t exactly easy for the average homeowner to install in their homes.

However companies have been making strides in improving on this, such as Tesla who has designed solar panels to look like roof tiles to help them blend in, but it is possible that in the future solar panels could be installed on our windows instead of our roofs. This is thanks to researchers at the Michigan State University (via PC Mag) who have been working on creating transparent solar cells that can do just that.

According to Richard Lunt, the Johansen Crosby Endowed Associate Professor of Chemical Engineering and Materials Science at MSU, “We analyzed their potential and show that by harvesting only invisible light, these devices can provide a similar electricity-generation potential as rooftop solar while providing additional functionality to enhance the efficiency of buildings, automobiles and mobile electronics.”

It should be noted that MSU’s efforts aren’t new and they aren’t the first. In the past we’ve seen various projects carried out by other researchers and companies in various iterations, such as films that can be simply pasted over glass doors/windows. However when these will become more commercially available or viable still remains to be seen.

Tyler Lee
Categories: Green
Tags: Solar, _cold