Quantum Dot Recipe May Lead To Cheaper Solar Panels

Science Daily is reporting that scientists have developed a new method for cost-effectively producing four-armed quantum dots that have previously been shown to be particularly effective at converting sunlight into electrical energy. The discovery could clear the way for better, cheaper solar energy panels.

Comments

A long way to go yet

[flend]

As the summary points out, this is just a new recipe for making quantum dot tetrapods, for use in, for example, thin film solar cells where the cadmium selenide dots are encased in a polymer layer.

As with all stories about incremental progress in solar cell there are still a few hurdles yet to overcome:

Power conversion efficiencies from these cells are typically below 4% (eg. 1.8% original report, Sun et. al Nano Lett 3, 961). A good crystalline silicon cell will give you 12-15%.

Stability. Nanocrystals tend to go off pretty quickly and you don't want to be replacing your solar cell every week or so.

Cadmium is hella-toxic and _may be_ more so in nanocrystal form. A little vial of the stuff is enough to kill you, apparently. Makes you wonder about all those Ni-Cd batteries.

However, I welcome the (eventual) coming of our new tetrapod overlords.

Re:I applaud any solar breakthroughs regardless

[mattatwork]

It seems to early to tell how cool this will be...it'll be nice to see how the quantum-dot-based photovoltaics technology performs in the real world

I find it ironic that just about every solution we find to preserve limited resources and create environmentally friendly technology contains at least one toxic compound in it (cadmium selenide in this case)....

Re:Oil Companies

[vertinox]

are they securing their future and/or slowing solar tech down?

Maybe they know their business model is about to die a very bad death due to market changes we don't know about.

Remember, the oil companies came up with the Peak Oil theory, not the environmentalists.

non-toxic quantum dots

[Anonymous Coward]

Indium Phosphide (InP) QDs are around the corner. You heard it here first. My coworkers have been synthesizing them recently. No heavy metals or toxicity there--but then again, even if you were to accidentally ingest (and digest) some CdSe quantum dots, the amount of cadmium exposure would be comparable to smoking a cigarette.

(posting as AC so I don't get in trouble with the company legal team)

Re:Oil Companies

[autophile]

It's like some kind of demented Turing test. You have two terminals. One is connected to an evil guy twirling his moustache. The other is connected to a profit-seeking corporate board. But you don't know which terminal is connected to whom! Can you tell, just by examining their actions, which is the evil moustache, and which is the corporate board?

Kthxbai,

--Rob