The challenge currently facing solar panels used in residential and industrial applications is inefficiency in converting sunlight into electricity. The average conversion efficiency is between 17-19%. A spin-off of a company called Insolight from the EPFL has created a new residential solar panel that is almost twice as efficient as a regular panel. According to independent laboratory testing, these new solar panels have a conversion efficiency of 29%.

This solar panel uses a patented optical system that concentrates sunlight on a miniature photovoltaic cell commonly used in satellites. The solar panels used on satellites are usually very expensive. To reduce costs, the research team has developed a protective glass that can hold optical lenses to increase the concentration of sunlight to more than 100 times and direct sunlight to high performance. The battery has a very small surface.
This design means that the new solar cell covers less than 0.5% of the total surface area of the solar panel. The mechanism of moving the solar cell horizontally by a few millimetres allows the panel to follow the sun throughout the day. Because Insolight's high-efficiency panels are so small, they can be laid on top of traditional solar panels to increase solar production. This hybrid method is particularly effective in cloudy weather because it generates electricity even under diffused light. The new panels are the same size and shape as existing solar panels and are installed in the same way. Designers say the technology can cut household energy bills by 30% in sunny areas, and the first commercial product using the technology is expected to be launched in 2022.
The team said their panels have been tested in all weather conditions. The test found that in heat waves, storms and winter weather, the panels worked all the time without any problems. The Solar Energy Research Institute of the Technical University of Madrid (IES-UPM) verified the conversion efficiency of this solar panel to 29%.
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