Solar panels that work at night produce enough power to charge a phone - Printable Version +- Scivillage.com Casual Discussion Science Forum (https://www.scivillage.com) +-- Forum: Science (https://www.scivillage.com/forum-61.html) +--- Forum: General Science (https://www.scivillage.com/forum-81.html) +--- Thread: Solar panels that work at night produce enough power to charge a phone (/thread-12036.html)

Solar panels that work at night produce enough power to charge a phone - C C - Apr 5, 2022 https://www.newscientist.com/article/2314957-solar-panels-that-work-at-night-produce-enough-power-to-charge-a-phone/ EXCERPTS: At night ... solar panels radiate heat to outer space, which has a temperature of around 3 kelvin (-270.15°C), because heat travels in the direction of lower temperatures. This makes the solar panel cooler than the night air, a temperature difference that can be exploited to produce electricity. [...] When pointed at a clear night sky, the modified solar cell generated a power output of 50 milliwatts per square metre. This is just 0.04 per cent of the power output of a regular solar cell during the daytime. But 50 milliwatts per square metre would enable low-power devices, such as a phone charger or a low-wattage LED light, to function. While the night-time solar cells could be useful in off-grid locations for certain low-power tasks, their current performance means they are unlikely to replace existing energy infrastructure. [...] the set-up could be improved to generate more power and there are no intrinsic difficulties in one day scaling the system up to a commercial product... (MORE - missing details) PAPER: https://aip.scitation.org/journal/apl RE: Solar panels that work at night produce enough power to charge a phone - Kornee - Apr 6, 2022 "...While the night-time solar cells could be useful in off-grid locations for certain low-power tasks, their current performance means they are unlikely to replace existing energy infrastructure. [...] the set-up could be improved to generate more power and there are no intrinsic difficulties in one day scaling the system up to a commercial product..." Just 'unlikely' to replace? Ha ha ha ha. Is there no limit to such insane ramblings?