Double The Power, Half The Panels: Scientists Tout Tandem Solar Cells For Capturing Record Energy

Solar energy industry experts say the development of tandem panels could increase the efficiency of solar power.

What Happened: Tandem solar panels, which stack two solar materials on top of each other to capture more of the sun’s energy, achieved a record-breaking 33.89% efficiency.

This is a significant leap from the 20-22% efficiency of commercially available solar panels, reported Wired, citing a study published in Nature.

The tandem solar cells, developed by a team of researchers at the energy giant LONGi, combine silicon and perovskite materials. This innovation allows the cells to capture an additional 60% of solar energy. It also reduced the number of panels required to produce the same energy. It also cuts installation costs and land requirements for solar farms.

While the current efficiency of silicon solar cells is limited to about 29%, perovskite materials, discovered less than two decades ago, have emerged as the ideal complement to silicon technology. Their light absorption tunability allows them to capture high-energy blue light more efficiently than silicon, thereby increasing the total tandem efficiency.

Why It Matters: The recent breakthrough in tandem solar panels could have far-reaching implications for the solar energy industry. The increased efficiency of these panels could significantly reduce the number of panels required for solar farms and cut installation costs and land requirements.

The development of tandem solar panels comes at a time when solar power is gaining significant traction. Solar companies, like Sunrun Inc RUN and Enphase Energy ENPH, could benefit in the long run if technological advancements make residential solar more attractive. The Invesco Solar ETF TAN, an ETF that tracks the solar space, traded down more than 2% Tuesday as the overall market declined amid geopolitical tensions in the Middle East.

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