A team of researchers at the Nanyang Technological University (NTU) has demonstrated a prototype of a flexible 30cm by 30cm plastic sheet with perovskite printed on it. To achieve this, various liquid chemicals, including the perovskite, are mixed together. The solution is then poured into a standard screen printer and printed onto sheets of plastic or glass.
The team stated that since perovskite is translucent, and its color can also be adjusted through chemical processes, perovskite solar panels could even be integrated into building facades, which is not possible with current silicon-made solar panels that are opaque and would block out light. These perovskite panels could also be cheaper to produce, costing about three times less than conventional silicon cells, the researchers said.
The team also discovered that other than absorbing energy for conversion into electricity, perovskite nanoparticles can also emit light. This allows for the potential application where a perovskite screen could function as both a display screen and solar panel, said the scientists.
The NTU team is working with scientists from the Singapore-Berkeley Research Initiative for Sustainable Energy on the perovskite research. It also received funding from the National Research Foundation's Competitive Research Programme, which disburses funding of up to $10 million.
