“This was a pleasant surprise for us”

Japanese physicists have developed a stretchable solar cell that could power wearable devices in the future without sacrificing energy conversion efficiency.

A team from Japanese research institute Riken sought to create a flexible solar panels for portable devices that still perform well when stretched during normal daily work, the company detailed in the release.

However, the team first had to overcome an obstacle related to the solar cells’ lack of “intrinsic stretchability.” Kenjiro Fukuda, Senior Researcher at Riken, said they are similar to plastic wrap in that they can only be stretched to a certain extent before they inevitably break.

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Fukuda and his colleagues have found the key to creating a high-performance, agile company. solar cell with extraordinary stretchability is contained in an organic compound called ION E.

By adding this compound to the electrode layer of a solar cell, they found that it significantly increased stretchability without affecting energy conversion efficiency. The team found that the cell retained 95% of its original energy efficiency after being stretched 100 times by 10%.

In his research, published in Natural communicationsthey realized that this connection offered another unforeseen benefit.

“It was a pleasant surprise for us,” Fukuda said at Riken. press release. “We did not expect ION E to increase adhesion between layers.”

“Thanks to these two effects, the electrode can sense part of the voltage of the active layer above it (which converts light into electrons), improving the stretchability of the entire device,” the researchers explained in press release.

Fukuda said the next step would be to develop a larger flexible organic solar cell. However, the team first needs to figure out how to overcome the low conductivity of the substance that converts solar energy into electricity.

Would you like a battery to be sewn into your clothes?

Completely

By no means

Of course, if it charges my phone

I’m not sure

Click on your choice to see the results and give your opinion.

If technology successfully developed, it could pave the way for the next generation of wearable devices. Several breakthroughs have already been made in flexible solar cell technologiessuch as shell-shaped solar cells which demonstrated increased light absorption and even cells for printing with the same efficiency as regular solar panels.

Since solar cells generate and store their own energy, they eliminate the need for recharging, thus reduction of energy consumption and tighten the mesh. In turn, this helps reduce pollution from electricity generated from dirty fuels. saving money saving the planet.

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