Exfoliation produces lighter, cheaper solar cells

An ultra-thin solar cell that could provide a cheaper, lighter alternative to existing devices has been created by researchers in the US.

James Zahler from Aonex Technologies, together with colleagues from the California Institute of Technology and EMCORE PhotoVoltaics made the device by replacing the relatively thick semiconductor substrate normally used in solar cells with a thin "wafer-bonded" substrate. This means the new device is considerable cheaper and lighter than conventional solar cells.