July 2007
All-Day Solar Cells
New photovoltaics get better performance throughout the day.
By David Talbot
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| Credit: Jud Ready |
Solar cells crank out the most power at noon, when the sun is at its highest point. But researchers at the Georgia Tech Research Institute have come up with a prototype that works best in the morning and afternoon. Their solar cell, whose surface consists of hundreds of thousands of 100-micrometer-high block-like towers (left), operates at high efficiencies through much of the day by catching light at many angles, with peak performance when the sun is at a 45° angle. "At an angle, the light has an opportunity to reflect off the sides of the towers," says Jud Ready, senior research engineer at the institute's Electro-Optical Systems Laboratory.
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