"Moth Eye" Graphene Breakthrough Could Create Indoor Solar Cells

[Thomas the Tank Engine]

 

A scientific breakthrough with the “wonder material” graphene has opened up the possibility of indoor solar cells that capture energy from indirect sunlight, as well as ambient energy from household devices.

 

Researchers from the University of Surrey in the U.K. studied the eyes of moths to create sheets of graphene that they claim is the most light-absorbent material ever created. The energy capture method could be used to power Internet of Things (IoT) devices, such as smart clothing, wearables and smart wallpaper.

 

“We realized that the moth’s eye works in a particular way that traps electromagnetic waves very efficiently,” Professor Ravi Silva, head of the Advanced Technology Institute at the University of Surrey, tells Newsweek . “As a result of our studies, we’ve been able to mimic the surface of a moth’s eye and create an amazingly thin, efficient, light-absorbent material made of graphene.”

 

Graphene, first created in a laboratory by researchers in 2004, has been touted by scientists as a wonder material due to its remarkable properties and vast potential. The one-atom thick material, consisting of carbon atoms in a honeycomb lattice, is 200-times stronger than steel, more conductive than copper and as flexible as rubber. These properties could potentially be used to create everything from flexible smartphones, to artificial retinas.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Read the rest: http://europe.newsweek.com/indoor-solar-cells-made-possible-moth-eye-graphene-breakthrough-430827

[flyingskippy]

Graphene never ceases to amaze me. Every few months scientists and engineers find a new way to put it to good use.

[FloatingFatMan]

18 hours ago, flyingskippy said:

Graphene never ceases to amaze me. Every few months scientists and engineers find a new way to put it to good use.

And yet still, no commercial product has made it to market...

[flyingskippy]

Same holds true years ago for composites or crystalline silicon as an example.  Now you can't walk into a hardware store without some 3rd party trying to sell solar panels for your house. Composites now are found in everything from auto body parts to aircraft airframes and now rockets.

 

[FloatingFatMan]

Perhaps, but until I start seeing graphene products on the market, it's just all so much pixie dust and rocking horse poop.

[+DonC Subscriber²]

Yeah but you gotta admit that it's some of the best pixie dust out there.