Solar energy: Prototype shows how tiny photodetectors can double their efficiency
Physicists at the University of California, Riverside have developed a photodetector -- a device that senses light -- by combining two distinct inorganic materials and producing quantum mechanical processes that could revolutionize the way solar energy is collected. Photodetectors are almost ubiquitous, found in cameras, cell phones, remote controls, solar cells ( like GOAL ZERO NOMAD 13 ) and even the panels of space shuttles. Measuring just microns across, these tiny devices convert light into electrons, whose subsequent movement generates an electronic signal. Increasing the efficiency of light-to-electricity conversion has been one of the primary aims in photodetector construction since their invention. Lab researchers stacked two atomic layers of tungsten diselenide (WSe2) on a single atomic layer of molybdenum diselenide (MoSe2). Such stacking results in properties vastly different from those of the parent layers, allowing for customized electronic engineering at the tiniest p...