Researchers have developed environmentally friendly materials that could harvest enough energy from indoor light to power wireless smart devices.
Researchers from the University of Cambridge, Imperial College London and Soochow University in China have recently discovered that new green materials currently being developed for next-generation solar panels could be useful for indoor light harvesting.
The team investigated perovskite-inspired materials, which were created to circumvent problems with materials called perovskites, which were developed for next-generation solar cells. Although perovskites are cheaper to make than traditional silicon-based solar panels and deliver similar efficiency, perovskites contain toxic lead substances.
Despite being more environmentally friendly, these perovskite-inspired materials are not as efficient at absorbing sunlight. However, the team found that the materials are much more effective at absorbing indoor light, with efficiencies that are promising for commercial applications. Crucially, the researchers demonstrated that the power provided by these materials under indoor illumination is already sufficient to operate electronic circuits.
“The Internet of Things is critical for many areas, such as improved healthcare, energy conservation, transportation or control of smart buildings,” said co-authro Professor Judith Driscoll from Cambridge’s Department of Materials Science and Metallurgy. “New generations of wireless connected IoT devices function with low-power electronics ideally suited to operate with energy-scavenging devices.”
In addition to their eco-friendly nature, these materials could potentially be processed onto unconventional substrates such as plastics and fabric, which are incompatible with conventional technologies. Therefore, lead-free perovskite-inspired materials could soon enable battery-free devices for wearables, healthcare monitoring, smart homes, and smart cities.
