Solar Cells X Beauty

In the field of photovoltaics, an important trend is to increase the aesthetic and creative design aspects of solar cells. At X-LAB we have introduced the concept of “Photovoltaic Photographs”, semi-transparent solar cells treated with a light-induced process to integrate an image in the photoactive layer, allowing creative applications such as photovoltaic photographs, paintings, posters, etc.

As a proof-of-principle for the concept of photovoltaic photographs, demonstrators (up to 9×9 cm²) have been realized using dye-sensitized solar cells, due to ease of fabrication and broad variety of available colors. With the presented concept and insights we aim to inspire further exploration in combining these processes with other PV technologies to enhance the aesthetical and design possibilities of solar cells.