Scientists in China have developed a new way of harvesting solar power by applying a translucent coating over a window to direct energy from ambient light to the edge of the glass — where it can be captured and stored.
With rising global energy demands, there is a need for new technologies that can incorporate energy capture into their architecture. The cost of solar installations has dramatically decreased since 2010, resulting in over four million installations in America. This trend is predicted to continue, but what if we could improve solar utilization by using the windows of buildings as well? That's what scientists aimed to address in a study published July 28 in the journal PhotoniX.
