A new quantum material promises more than 190% efficiency of solar panels.
A team of researchers has developed a quantum material that could boost the efficiency of solar panels, a discovery that will make it possible to manufacture a new generation of solar panels with which to face global energy needs.
The discovery has been developed by researchers from the Lehigh University, Pennsylvania (United States), and the details have been published in the magazine Science Advances.
“This work represents a significant leap forward in our understanding and development of sustainable energy solutions, with innovative approaches that could redefine the solar energy efficiency and accessibility in the near future,” says Chinedu Ekuma, a physicist at Lehigh University and co-author of the study.
The prototype, which uses the new material as an active layer in a solar cell, achieves a 80% average photovoltaic absorption and an unprecedented external quantum efficiency (EQE) or capacity to convert sunlight into electricity: up to 190%, thus far exceeding the theoretical limit of Shockley-Queisser efficiency for silicon-based materials, reports Efe.
This index established in 1961 set the capacity to convert solar energy into electrical energy at 33.7%. Over the years, the silicon panels They have been approaching this limit that has finally been surpassed by other materials, such as quantum materials that are driving photovoltaic energy to new heights.
The material’s jump in efficiency is largely attributed to its characteristic “intermediate band states”, specific energy levels that are located within the electronic structure of the material and that are ideal for solar energy conversion. Additionally, the material performs especially well with high absorption levels in the infrared and visible regions of the electromagnetic spectrum.
In traditional solar cells, the maximum external quantum efficiency (EQE) is 100%, which means that for each photon absorbed from light, an electron is generated and captured. But some advanced materials developed in recent years have managed to generate and collect more than one electron from high energy photonswhich represents an EQE greater than 100%.
Although these Multiple Exciton Generation (MEG) materials have not yet been widely commercialized, they have the potential to greatly increase the efficiency of solar energy systems. In the material developed by Lehigh, the intermediate band states They allow the capture of photon energy that is lost in traditional solar cells, including through reflection and heat production.
Ekuma, an expert in computational condensed matter physics, developed the prototype as a proof of concept after a computer model demonstrated its theoretical potential. For this researcher, the great efficiency of new quantum material makes it a “promising candidate for the development of next-generation, high-efficiency solar cells, which will play a crucial role in addressing global energy needs.”
And while integrating the newly designed quantum material into current solar energy systems will require more research, Ekuma maintains that the experimental technique used to create these materials is already well advanced.
Science Advances 202410 (15) DOI: 10.1126/sciadv.adl6752
