New Material Could Raise Efficiency of Solar Panels  

A new crystalline material called perovskite could boost the ability of solar panels to create electrical energy from sunlight. Typical silicon solar panels operate at around 22% efficiency—meaning they convert about that amount of sunlight they receive into electricity.

Perovskites have the potential to create solar panels that are more than 40% efficient. This material has a flaw, though; it is easily degraded and must be made more durable to be commercially viable. Scientists are making progress in that direction, and there is significant investment being made to make perovskites able to stand up to the harsh demands of deployment within solar panels.

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