Usually when we talk about solar cells, there are just two varieties.  Silicon and thin film.  Both were our ideas.  We thought, "Well, if a photon can knock an electron off a substance a plant made, why not a substance people made."  So we came up with substances that lose electrons when hit with photons. 

But, just now, when blogging about Jimmy Stewart and the future of Solar Power as seen in 1938, I realized that EcoGeek has never once mentioned what is still the future of solar power: Porphyrin.  Instead of creating our own substances that will lose electrons, some scientists are using porphyrin, the chemical that plants use to convert light into electricity. 

Porphyrin chemistry is confusing and troublesome.  And while it's been going on for a while, practical applications are still a ways off.  But, when they do arrive, we can expect much broader capabilities from solar power.  Porphyrin complexes, for example, can be painted on in huge swaths or incorporated into plastics.  They're also two to three times more efficient than anything silicon or thin film. 

The Fresh Science Initiative has announced that a team in Sydney has taken the first steps to practical organic solar cells.  By attaching hundreds porphyrin molecules to the outside of several bucky balls, the team has managed to create a high enough density of porpharyn molecules to produce a significant amount of electricity. Though they're certainly in the first stages, it will be very exciting to follow their progress.

Leaves are extremely efficient, inexpensive, and environmentally neutral solar cells.  It's in our best interest to figure out how they do it as soon as possible so we can rid ourselves of our clumsy first attempts at mimicking nature. 

 

Via ABCNews