Scientists develop ultra-thin solar cells

[RandomGuy]

Scientists develop ultra-thin solar cells
TOKYO — Austrian and Japanese researchers on Wednesday unveiled solar cells thinner than a thread of spider silk that are flexible enough to be wrapped around a single human hair.

The thin-film device, comprising electrodes on a plastic foil, is about 1.9 micro-metres thick, a tenth the size of the thinnest solar cells currently available, the researchers said.

One micro-metre is one millionth of a metre (3.3 feet).

"The total thickness of this device is less than a typical thread of spider silk," the researchers said in a report carried by online science journal Nature Communications.

"Being ultra-thin means you don't feel its weight and it is elastic," said one of the researchers, Tsuyoshi Sekitani from the University of Tokyo.

"You could attach the device to your clothes like a badge to collect electricity (from the sun)... Elderly people who might want to wear sensors to monitor their health would not need to carry around batteries," Sekitani told AFP.

The research was done jointly by Martin Kaltenbrunner, Siegfried Bauer and other researchers from Johannes Kepler University of Austria as well as Sekitani and other contributors from University of Tokyo.

Sekitani said it was possible to make the cells bigger.

"Power generation by solar cells increases with their size. As this device is soft, it is less prone to damage by bending even if it gets bigger," he said.

Sekitani said the team hoped to increase the rate at which the device converts sunlight into electricity and put it to practical use in around five years.

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http://www.google.com/hostednews/afp/article/ALeqM5jBsUhWvRp1FZNltWbSJ212MKYV1Q?docId=CNG.5de50 c9c06a27e66c789b153e84d2760.141

[LnGrrrR]

Sweet. Nice to see geniuses coming up with this stuff.

[Drachen]

since (as has been discussed in other threads) the great majority of the cost of solar is in the installation and racks, this should alleviate THAT cost.

THis is a great thing

[MannyIsGod]

As I say in ever solar thread, exponential growth in efficiency coupled with exponential decline in price blah blah blah.

[Wild Cobra]

Sweet. Nice to see geniuses coming up with this stuff.
Absolutely. I wonder what the watts/sq. meter are and at what cost though. Could it ever be economically feasible?

[Wild Cobra]

bets on how long until someone makes a solar powered condom?
I was thinking it would make a nice Solar Sail (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Solar_sail).

[Winehole23]

bets on how long until someone makes a solar powered condom?no bet, however: do you leave the rubber out in the sun beforehand, or did you have another means of solar collection in mind?

and btw, what does the "solar power" power? a gentle glow, or something more?

the implicit dimensions of your fleeting remark remain to be answered imho.

[mouse]

I bet the Cancer patients are excited.

[boutons_deux]

lots of cool stuff in cancer development, but after 50 years of cool stuff in the War on Cancer, cancer death rate of all cancers remains about the same.

[mouse]

lots of cool stuff in cancer development, but after 50 years of cool stuff in the War on Cancer, cancer death rate of all cancers remains about the same.

You want to hand over an ultra-thin solar cell sweater vest to some 12 year old child in Texas with only 6 months to live?

go right a head.

[Wild Cobra]

lots of cool stuff in cancer development, but after 50 years of cool stuff in the War on Cancer, cancer death rate of all cancers remains about the same.
Maybe because it's a natural form of death, and Jehovah said we would live no more that 125 years.

[boutons_deux]

"You want to hand over an ultra-thin solar cell sweater vest to some 12 year old child in Texas with only 6 months to live"

???

Types of cancer and death rates (from all diseases) vary significantly between the "synthetic" countries where food is heavily processed, denatured and BigChem has poisoned everything vs less developed countries. UCA is our worst enemy.

[Wild Cobra]

"You want to hand over an ultra-thin solar cell sweater vest to some 12 year old child in Texas with only 6 months to live"

???

Types of cancer and death rates (from all diseases) vary significantly between the "synthetic" countries where food is heavily processed, denatured and BigChem has poisoned everything vs less developed countries. UCA is our worst enemy.
And lifestyles don't matter?

[boutons_deux]

food, quality and quantity, IS a major, dominant component of "lifestyle"

[Wild Cobra]

food, quality and quantity, IS a major, dominant component of "lifestyle"
Yes it is. are you saying people don't have a choice in what they buy and eat?

[boutons_deux]

no.

Like cows and pigs, most people eat what's put before them by corporations, eat what everybody else eats, and end up diseased and overweight.

[Wild Cobra]

no.

Like cows and pigs, most people eat what's put before them by corporations, eat what everybody else eats, and end up diseased and overweight.
Is it a lifestyle choice, or are they force fed these products?

[boutons_deux]

not a conscious lifestyle choice, but ignorance following the herd.

Not to eat S.A.D. is conscious choice.

[CubanMustGo]

How about keeping one thread here on topic, and not have it go into some fucking rathole having nothing to do with the original subject? Christ, you guys just can't keep from crapping on everything.

[Wild Cobra]

not a conscious lifestyle choice, but ignorance following the herd.

Not to eat S.A.D. is conscious choice.
OK...

So it is a lifestyle choice.

If people didn't buy them, they would market what people would buy. You know that, right?

Now I'm not defending the industry that makes crap food, but as consumers, we have the responsibility to buy healthy. They don't have the responsibility of making things only healthy.

If you want Uncle Tom, and his sister be a Nanny to you, to protect you from yourself, why not just ask them to put you in a strait jacket and padded room?

[mouse]

How about keeping one thread here on topic, and not have it go into some fucking rathole having nothing to do with the original subject? Christ, you guys just can't keep from crapping on everything.

Have you notified mombear?

http://www.spursreport.com/forums/members/mombear.html
http://www.spursreport.com/forums/misc.php?do=flashchat&room=1

[Agloco]

I bet the Cancer patients are excited.

This statement is understandable, since the connections aren't immediately obvious........even to an MIT grad.


lots of cool stuff in cancer development, but after 50 years of cool stuff in the War on Cancer, cancer death rate of all cancers remains about the same.

http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.3322/caac.20138/full

OR

http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.3322/caac.20138/pdf


Trends in Cancer Mortality

Based on the most recent 5 years of mortality data (2004-2008), the overall cancer death rate decreased by 1.8% per year in males and by 1.6% per year in females. These declines have been consistent since 2001/2002 and are larger in magnitude than those occurring in the previous decade (Table 5).


Among men, reductions in death rates for lung, prostate, and colorectal cancers account for 78% of the total decrease in the cancer death rate, with lung cancer alone accounting for almost 40% of the decrease. Among women, reductions in death rates for breast and colorectal cancers account for 56% of the total decrease, with breast cancer accounting for 34% of the decrease in women. The decrease in lung cancer death rates among men since 1990 is due to the reduction in tobacco use over the past 50 years,23 while the decrease in death rates for female breast, colorectal, and prostate cancer largely reflects improvements in early detection and/or treatment.

You're welcome.

[Agloco]

Um, yeah the solar stuff is cool btw :tu

[FuzzyLumpkins]

http://phys.org/news/2012-01-nanotechnology-strategy-chemotherapy-prostate-cancer.html

The RNA encoded nanotube delivery systems are fucking awesome!

[Agloco]

http://phys.org/news/2012-01-nanotechnology-strategy-chemotherapy-prostate-cancer.html

The RNA encoded nanotube delivery systems are fucking awesome!

Yes, I've seen work on this before. Quite amazing stuff. :tu

[mouse]

Yes, I've seen work on this before. Quite amazing stuff. :tu

Totally!
:wakeup

[mouse]

This statement is understandable, since the connections aren't immediately obvious
You're welcome.

Are you claiming Science has cured Cancer?

[boutons_deux]

yep, huge progress after 50 years of War on Cancer (now really The Business of Cancer)

More than Half of Cancer is Preventable

(Ivanhoe Newswire) -- According to the American Cancer Society, an estimated 1,638,910 new cancer cases will be diagnosed this year in the United States. Also this year, 577,190 Americans are expected to die of cancer.

http://www.ivanhoe.com/channels/p_channelstory.cfm?storyid=29220

[Winehole23]

How about keeping one thread here on topic, and not have it go into some fucking rathole having nothing to do with the original subject? Christ, you guys just can't keep from crapping on everything.welcome back to politics, CMG :lol:toast

[Agloco]

yep, huge progress after 50 years of War on Cancer (now really The Business of Cancer)

More than Half of Cancer is Preventable

(Ivanhoe Newswire) -- According to the American Cancer Society, an estimated 1,638,910 new cancer cases will be diagnosed this year in the United States. Also this year, 577,190 Americans are expected to die of cancer.

http://www.ivanhoe.com/channels/p_channelstory.cfm?storyid=29220

You suppose a War on Human Nature will yield fruit?

[boutons_deux]

As with cancer, diabetes, kidney disease, hypertensions, CVD, Americans inflict themselves as much as "nature" does.

The biggest self-inflicted causes are pathogenic diet as defined by BigFood, and the 100K untested chemicals that BigChem pollutes everything with. (note this week's "captured" FDA allowing internationally known and banned edocrine-disruptor BPA to remain unbanned in USA).