By absorbing light in a rainbow of brightly hued energy-generating glass panels, these windows could harness power from both outdoor sunlight and indoor artificial light, so they could produce electricity day and night. They are made of a special material called a conjugated polymer sandwiched between two clear plastic panels. Such polymers are very versatile organic molecules, making it easy to change their chemical and physical properties. PNV poly(naphthalene-alt-vinylene) acts like a waveguide absorbing light coming at it from every angle but then it’s directed towards the panels’ edges, which are lined with solar cells. The windows outdoor in direct sunlight and indoors under LED lighting showed a sunlight-to-electricity conversion efficiency of up to 2.9 percent outside and 3.6 percent under LED light. It’s low compared to commercial silicon solar cells, which boast around 20% efficiency, but the panels could cost much less.
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