Sliver cells in the news (Courtesy ABC TV)
While solar power is clean and green, the great drawback for it has always been cost: it is more expensive than coal or gas-generated electricity. But could that finally be about to change? Researchers at ANU certainly think so. They've invented a new kind of solar cell that will slash the cost of solar panels. People will choose to put solar on their rooves, they say, because the panels will provide cheaper electricity than power from the grid.
The new kind of solar cells are called sliver cells, and the reason they are so cheap to manufacture is because they use 90% less silicon than standard solar panels. One of Australia's largest utility companies is so convinced of the technology's potential they have bought the rights to it and have already built a pilot factory to produce the new solar panels.
More on ABC TV's Catalyst: Sliver Cells 8: March 2007
