Flexible, Fiber-Optic Solar Cell Could Be Woven Into Clothing 65
MrSeb writes "An international team of engineers, physicists, and chemists have created the first fiber-optic solar cell. These fibers are thinner than human hair, flexible, and yet they produce electricity, just like a normal solar cell. The U.S. military is already interested in weaving these threads into clothing, to provide a wearable power source for soldiers. In essence, the research team started with optical fibers made from glass — and then, using high-pressure chemical vapor deposition, injected n-, i-, and p-type silicon into the fiber, turning it into a solar cell (abstract). Functionally, these silicon-doped fiber-optic threads are identical to conventional solar cells, generating electricity from the photovoltaic effect. Whereas almost every solar cell on the market is crafted out of 2D, planar amorphous silicon on a rigid/brittle glass substrate, though, these fiber-optic solar cells have a 3D cross-section and retain the glass fiber's intrinsic flexibility. The lead researcher, John Badding of Penn State University, says the team has already produced 'meters-long fiber,' and that their new technique could be used to create 'bendable silicon solar-cell fibers of over 10 meters in length.' From there, it's simply a matter of weaving the thread into a fabric."
Re:Call me when it's here (Score:5, Informative)
Uh, yeah. Let me guess. It should be on the market in five years, just like every other solar technical wonder.
Oh please. If only you knew what was really going on, you'd have trouble breathing. Prices for solar power have dropped so rapidly and so consistently people are calling it "Moore's Law for Solar" [forbes.com]. A quote from the article: Solar modules prices have dropped from $300 per watt in 1956 to $50 per watt in the 1970s to $10 in the 90s to $1.05 a watt today. Just what did you think this should look like?
Approximately half of all the generating capacity last year was from renewable energy sources. [kcet.org] The miracle of having an actually usable smartphone was a pipe dream just 5 years ago. Now, even most poor folks have one.
Today, anybody can afford to board a high speed aircraft and travel at 350 MPH at 40,000 with safety that rivals our living rooms. Think about that. A chair, 40,000 feet in the air, travelling 350 MPH, affordable to nearly everybody, complete with magazines to read, and we mostly complain about the noise.
Sheesh.
Re:A new way to recharge my Phone? (Score:5, Informative)
Your math is off by orders of magnitude.
A solar panel produces 8-10 watts per square foot. A smartphone while charging (with the screen off) typically draws no more than 500 mA at 5VDC, or about 2.5 watts. Some support faster charging at up to an amp. Either way, it requires nowhere near your entire surface area; with traditional PV cells, a typical adult could produce that much power with just one sleeve in full sun, give or take.
How that translates to flexible PV threads is anybody's guess.