Research on painted solar cells isn’t new, but it has been challenging to make these solar cells efficient enough to actually be useful. Now, scientists in a lab at the University of Sheffield have discovered a trick to making them work better: A material called perovskite, which can be almost as efficient as silicon, but cheaper to make and, in theory, more environmentally friendly.

Scientists are one step closer to spray-on solar power. Instead of traditional bulky solar cells encased in glass–which can be awkward to put in places other than a roof, and take a lot of energy to produce–we may someday be able to easily spray paint low-cost, low-energy solar cells on everything from a pair of jeans, to a car, to the side of a skyscraper.



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