A research breakthrough from IBM could drop the cost of generating solar electricity significantly.
Like a child using a magnifying glass to burn a leaf, IBM scientists use a large lens to concentrate the Sun’s power, a technology known as concentrator photovoltaics, or CPV. That energy is then converted into 70 watts of usable electrical power, about five times the electrical power density generated by cells using CPV technology in typical solar farms.
Key to the advance was how to cool the cell. Concentrating the equivalent of 2,000 suns on such a small area generates enough heat to melt stainless steel. Borrowing from its own R&D in cooling computer chips, the IBM team was able to cool the solar cell from more than 2,900 degrees to 185 degrees Fahrenheit. The researchers applied a very thin layer of a liquid metal made of a gallium and indium compound between the chip and a cooling block. Known as thermal interface layers, such layers transfer the heat from the chip to the cooling block.
“We believe IBM can bring unique skills from our vast experience in semiconductors and nanotechnology to the important field of alternative energy research,” said Dr. Supratik Guha, the scientist leading photovoltaics activities at IBM Research. “This is one of many exploratory research projects incubating in our labs where we can drive big change for an entire industry while advancing the basic underlying science of solar cell technology."
If the breakthrough can be commercialized, it would lower the cost of solar farms as fewer components would be needed to generate the same amount of power.
Learn more:
IBM Research Unveils Breakthrough In Solar Farm Technology (press release)