Scientists make solar panel of microantennes

Isra lwa arabs for illicit arms scientists create a solar cell panel antennas with a length of less than a micrometer. The antennas would sunlight effective lwa nter to be able to convert into electricity than solar cells of silicon.

Solar cells can use only a limited part of the total spectrum of light capture and therefore absorb only a fraction of the available energy, argues Koby Scheuer of the Department of Physical Electronics from Tel Aviv University. Antennas are normally created to make radio waves to catch, but Scheuer and his team make antennas so small that they have shorter wavelengths of light can absorb. Using antennas with a length of less than a micrometer.

“A group of antennas of different length in the same way and made of the same material, and thus the entire available spectrum of light to exploit,” says Scheuer. A solar panel antennas would also be cheap to produce.

To get an idea of the efficiency measured the research team with the capabilities of the micro-antennas to incoming radiation re-send. When the first test proved to be 95 percent of the incoming energy output, according to Crack an indication that the circuit is efficient can be employed.

The ultimate goal of the scientists is to make a solar panel of a layer of plastic, in which a lithography machine antennas of different length and form be etched. The team already has a model done, but now focuses on improving the conversiecapaciteit of the antennas. Details on the current efficiency, the researchers not.