A stock photo of Graphene based transistors. @unknown

by Ahmed Bilal

One of the major reasons that solar panels are facing such hurdles to replace conventional electricity sources is because they are very inefficient. The most efficient (and most expensive) panel is currently somewhere around 32 percent efficiency. However, scientists in Switzerland have figured out a way to utilize Graphene in solar panel design, raising its efficiency to an absolutely staggering 60% – a finally feasible amount.

The experiment was conducted by a team from École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL) and no I cannot pronounce that and they were able to convert a single photon into electorns, producing an electric current. They did this by placing a thin layer of Graphene into an ultra high vacuum chamber. Electrons were subtracted and added chemically before the process (graphene doping). Then, it was blasted with a super fast pulse of laser light which excited the electrons in Graphene and put the whole material into a higher energy state. Since electric conduction is relative the new state was higher than before, resulting in current, and once again as it reverted back to its old state. This phenomenon can then be conducted as an electric current and used for power, and it all happens in a matter of femtoseconds, so a few quadrillionths of a second.

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