High-transmittance solar photovoltaic panels

What are transparent photovoltaics (TPVs)?

Transparent photovoltaics (TPVs), which combine visible transparency and solar energy conversion, are being developed for applications in which conventional opaque solar cells are unlikely to be feasible, such as windows of buildings or vehicles.

What are transparent and semitransparent photovoltaics?

Transparent and semitransparent photovoltaics offer an exciting opportunity to integrate existing infrastructure with renewable energy.

Why do photovoltaic devices have low transparency?

The low transparency indicates again the difficulty of balancing the photovoltaic performance and device transparency. The lack of highly transparent electrodes is also be suspected as an important reason for the low device transparency.

How to improve TPV transparency in semitransparent solar cells?

Reducing the content of the visible-light-harvesting semiconductor is proved an effective method to enhance the TPV transparency in semitransparent solar cells 5, 24, 25. With the ultra-narrow bandgap (1.24 eV) 26, IEICO-4F can only slightly absorb the red light (600–650 nm), which indicates a good transparent semiconductor candidate for TPV.

What is a semitransparent solar cell?

Semitransparent solar cells combine the advantages of visible light transparency and photoelectric conversion.

What are the challenges in transparent photovoltaic (TPV) fields?

The challenges in transparent photovoltaic (TPV) fields are still that the device transparency and efficiency are difficult to be balanced to meet the requirements of practical applications.