The use of nanowire in the production of solar cells will one day make it cheaper and ubiquitous. Recently, scientists were able to discover a method by which nanowires can be made out of perovskite.
In previous years, solar cells were made of inexpensive materials but they were only able to achieve 3.8 percent efficiency. After technological improvements were made in their manufacture, they are now able to transform 21 percent of the sun's light into usable electricity.
Lately, scientists, as well as solar cell manufacturers, found out a better and cheaper way of making solar cells by incorporating nanowires in the production process.
This new method also increases the ability of the solar cells to convert light to electricity because nanowires act as 'direct conductive highways' that can conduct current more efficiently.
Gallium phosphide, a single crystal substance and a compound semiconductor material, is used by the researchers to make nanowires. This is not just an innovative way to generate fuel but also an effective way to boost the output up to 10 times.
In the journal 'Nature Communications', the scientists revealed in detail the process by which they generated fuel from nanowire infused solar cells. Essentially, the process involves the efficient splitting of liquid water so that hydrogen gas can be extracted. The product is a clean fuel that has extensive industrial and commercial applications.
The researchers claim that producing fuel through these solar cells has the potential of replacing environmentally unsafe fossil fuels. However, the scientists are still finding a better way to build these solar cells.
The answer could come from another team of scientists from France. Researchers connected with the École polytechnique fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), have discovered an easy and cheap way of 'growing' the nanowires.
This team used nanofluids, where the fluids are controlled by microcircuits on a nanometer scale. They created nanogrooves on a silicon base that guide the small streams of fluid. This results in tens of thousands of perovskite crystal 'wires' all lined up in parallel form.
