Current solar panels are about 30 percent efficient. Partly this is because the EV cells can only capture energy from a narrow band of solar electromagnetic radiation (light). Some of the unharnessed energy heats the panels.
The researchers have applied a photo-luminescent material to the panels. Some of the previously wasted solar radiation causes the material to glow in the the same spectrum the EV cells use to create charge, effectively allowing them to convert more light.
The modified solar panels are 50 percent efficient versus 30 percent, a 70 percent power gain.
Read more about this exciting tech at Science Daily, or dig into the original Nature Communications research article.
