Scientists from the chemistry department of the University of Chicago, Argonne National Laboratory and from the Institute for Molecular Engineering have developed "PID2," a new polymer that increases the efficiency of solar cells.

A new method of increasing a solar cell's efficiency with the new substance was also developed by the researchers. The polymer, a kind of big molecule that forms materials such as plastics, lets electrical charges flow more easily throughout the solar cell. This capability is a mechanism that has never been seen in solar cells.

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The cells' active regions are made from a cocktail of polymers that provide and collect electrons to create an electrical current when exposed to light. When added to the basic polymer-fullerene mixture, PID2 improved the efficiency of electrical power generation by 15 percent.

"Fullerene, a small carbon molecule, is one of the standard materials used in polymer solar cells," said said Luyao Lu, graduate student in chemistry and lead author of a paper describing the result.

"Basically, in polymer solar cells we have a polymer as electron donor and fullerene as electron acceptor to allow charge separation."

Lu said polymer solar cells have great potential to provide low-cost, lightweight and flexible electronic devices that harvest solar energy,

While polymers made into solar cells are a popular topic because of their appealing attributes, scientists are currently having trouble generating electricity efficiently with the materials, said Phys.org,.

Luping Yu, a professor in chemistry and leader of the University of Chicago team, said the field of polymer solar cells is still young. He even noted it's in its "infancy stage."

In the study, the team of researchers included another polymer into the cell, leading to solar cells that would have one fullerene molecule and two of the polymers. 

Tagssolar energy, solar power, Sunlight, Light, renewable energy, Energy, Electricity, electricity use