Solar Cell Innovations Brighten the Future of the Free Energy Home

Your desire to design a home with free energy may no longer be a utopian dream. If your solar power company does not make your energy free, it will at the very least make it much cheaper. These recent innovations in solar cell technology are solving challenges that have long limited the amount of freely available solar for use as energy. 

1. Harnessing the Invisible Light Spectrum 

The amount of solar power produced in an hour is more than the world consumes in a year. Current solar cell technology, however, only captures visible light—44 percent of the energy from the sun. The holy grail of solar companies is to capture infrared light—the invisible light making up 54 percent of the light spectrum. Now a global research team has uncovered a way to capture infrared light. A process called photochemical upconversion turns invisible light into visible light. This breakthrough will allow almost 100 percent of the sun's energy to be converted into electricity. The remaining 2 percent of the light spectrum is ultraviolet light. 

2. Improving Conversion Efficiency 

Solar cells, however, cannot currently convert all of the sun's energy into electricity. Although solar power companies are making rapid advances in solar conversion efficiency. The solar company invests heavily in material advances, Perovskite solar cells are a promising area for higher efficiency, lower-cost solar cells. Meanwhile, innovative ways are being developed to use waste heat generated in the solar conversion process. Hybrid solar cells are using the waste heat to:

• heat water using a heat exchanger for use as heat throughout the home.
• ​purify seawater to solve the energy and water scarcity problems.

3. Turning Shade Into Sun Power

Even with the ability to capture and harness most of the light spectrum as energy, solar power is an intermittent power source. When the sun does not shine or is blocked, backup power is required. Shading from trees or buildings is one of the biggest contributors to the inefficiency of your rooftop solar cells. 

Some clever scientists have reversed the solar conversion process. Instead of light being absorbed, it is emitted from the solar cell, reversing the flow of the current and voltage to generate power. Impressively, this thermoradiative cell provides a way to produce solar energy from the night skies, in the shade, and possibly on cloudy days, Together, nighttime and daytime photovoltaic cells would allow solar panels to provide a steady supply of power.

Learn more about these things by contacting a solar power company. 

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