Thin-film photovoltaics make window power generation no longer a dream

According to foreign media reports, a new solar product attracted everyone's attention at the CEATEC held in Japan recently. The product was developed by 3M. It is a special film that can be applied to ordinary windows and converted into solar panels. On the day of the expo, 3M demonstrated it on the curved surface of ordinary glass. It is reported that this window solar film is planned to be available next year. The new panel can not only generate electricity in the sun, but also serve as a heat insulation layer to provide protection for family homes.

The film is mainly made of an organic photovoltaic material, which has good power generation and heat insulation properties. In addition, the product has other functions, power generation is just its main function. It can also be used as a coolant, absorbing more than 90% of infrared light, while also preventing windows from shattering. The film is a translucent green strip that can be pasted on windows over a large area. According to Yasuhiro Aoyagi, a senior manager at 3M, this window film is easier to install than ordinary solar panels, and ordinary users can install it themselves without the need for specialized installers.

Although the product is eye-catching, it still has some shortcomings. Under the seemingly simple solution, the conversion rate of the product is not high, and its energy is only 20% of that of ordinary solar panels. According to 3M employees, one square meter of the product can roughly provide enough power for an iPhone, but only under the strongest sunlight. At present, the company has not disclosed the specific pricing of the new product, but its cost is only half of that of ordinary panels.

According to 3M employees, if this window film enters the Japanese market, 3M will target government buildings, commercial buildings and fast food restaurant owners. It is reported that earlier this year, 3M received a $4.4 million award from the U.S. Department of Energy. The award was based on an initiative to reduce the total cost of photovoltaic solar energy systems, with a goal of reducing the cost by 75%. In this way, solar energy can compete with other forms of energy in terms of cost and can develop normally even without subsidies.

In addition, scientists at the U.S. Department of Energy's Brookhaven National Laboratory and Los Alamos National Laboratory have recently developed a new type of transparent film that can absorb light and convert it into electricity over a large area. This film is made of semiconductors and fullerenes and has a micro-honeycomb structure. The relevant research was published in the latest issue of the journal Materials Chemistry. The paper stated that this technology can be used to develop transparent solar panels and even use this material to make windows that can generate electricity. This material is composed of a semiconductor polymer doped with carbon fullerene. Under strictly controlled conditions, the material can be assembled from a micrometer-scale hexagonal structure to a plane several millimeters in size covered with micro-honeycomb structures.

Mircea Cartwright, a physical chemist at the Center for Multifunctional Nanomaterials at Brookhaven National Laboratory in the United States who led the research, said that although the production of this honeycomb film uses a process similar to that of traditional polymer materials, it is the first time that semiconductors and fullerenes are used as raw materials and are able to absorb light to generate electric charges.