Thinner, Cheaper Dye-Based Solar Cells

Oct-15-13 Researchers have developed dye-based solar cells using organic dyes instead of silicon, lowering manufacturing costs and perhaps promoting the spread of solar energy to small electronics.

Made from the carbon-containing dye copper phthalocyanine and a small bit of red pigment, the solar cells are created by weaving metallic threads in and out of the stripes of dye and then printing the whole thing onto a sheet of tracing paper. Because organic dyes absorb a great deal of light, they can be used to make very thin film solar cells, with layers only about 50 nanometers thick.

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