Saule Technologies - Page 8

Researchers at EPFL (École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne) in Switzerland have stabilized perovskite solar cells by integrating metallic element rubidium into them, driving power-conversion efficiency to a staggering 22%.

The research outlines the integration of rubidium cations into perovskites; The perovskites maintained stability for more than 500 continuous hours in full sunlight at 85°C. The project team has already submitted a patent based on their innovation.

Researchers from the University of Wisconsin'Madison have discovered that a perovskite material could greatly enhance the technology of vacuum electronics. The material is capable of promoting the output power of the electron beam, and enables remote sensing and long-distance communications for a much lower energy cost than currently spent.

The researchers received a $1.3 million grant from the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency. They aimed to synthesize large quantities of the material and additionally analyze its properties. They also hope to locate other applications where this concept can be utilized.

Researchers at the Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL) in New Mexico, USA have found out why perovskite solar cells degrade in sunlight, as well as how the devices can 'self-heal' by being given time in the dark. The research, that determined that photo-degradation in perovskite cells is a purely electronic process due to charge accumulation without chemical damage to the crystal structure, could help catalyze the promising solar technology.

The new finding, that organometallic halide semiconducting perovskite solar cells degrade under continuous sunlight but recover in the dark is seen as very good news as it means the process is of physical nature rather than chemical decomposition. According to the researchers: 'After extensive characterization electronically and optically, we found it was the charge accumulation in the cell that reduces the photo-generated electrical current. Our team predicts the charge accumulation is initiated by the charged trap states, called small polaron states, which is only activated under light.'

Saule Technologies has signed an investment deal with Hideo Sawada, a Japanese investment company. Saule aims to combine perovskite solar cells with other currently available products, and this investment agreement came only a year after the company was launched.