Solar Energy ArticlesSolar Panels - How their Technology Evolved Over Time The study of the solar panels and the technology on which they are based right now dates back to as old as the early 19th century. It was the year 1839 when a scientist by the name of Alexandre Becquerel documented his research on the theory of harnessing power from the sun in order to make electricity. In this article, we are going to have a look at the evolution of solar panels over time. The very naive and early research of the solar panel technology had outcomes which are very ancient. It consisted of the electrodes dipped in a solution that is conductive. When sunlight hit the electrolytic solution, the electrodes started conducting. The first ever solar cell made its appearance in the history in the year 1883 when Charles Fritts made photovoltaic module of 1% efficiency out of selenium on gold. There was s a patent acquired on the technology behind the first ever popular "solar cell" in the year 1894. It was acquired with patent number US527377 by Melvin Severy. Then there were advances in the research and development which saw us study in detail, the theory behind the photovoltaic and the photoelectric effect. Albert Einstien published the first ever paper on the photoelectric effect in the year 1904. Eventually in the year 1954, AT&T Bell laboratories made the first ever silicon solar cell commercially available as well as with the apt of manufacturing processes. And this achievement gave birth to a new technology and guided the path of research in the solar panel innovation. By the year 1967, the technology of the solar panels and also the space applications behind it had become so much popular that they were implemented in the spacecrafts like Vanguard1 and Soyuz 1. However, in the period of years 1950s to 1970s, solar panels and the research behind it fell out of grace. The production of solar cells was governed by huge costs summing up to even $250 per watt of output, let alone the efficiency which did not even cross the mark of 10% by then. However, the development in the semiconductor industry served as a boon to the production of the solar cells. There was a boom in the sector of integrated electronics which served as a great sigh of relief for the solar panel industry. Eventually, due to such drastic developments in the technology behind the fabrication of the silicon chip, there were improvements in the cost per watt of the solar panels. By the year it was nearly 1973, the cost of the solar panels had been sufficiently decreased along with an optimum and the then best efficiency achieved was around 15%. At this time, the solar panels would be produced with an efficiency nearing as low as $10 per watt. Today, the solar power industry is rather very much technologically advanced and healthy. The price of the solar panels commercially made available is lesser than $3 per watt of power output. Due to these reasons, the home based installations as well as the government subsidies have increasingly become common. There are a huge number of photovoltaic power r stations that are making their ways in the markets. Also, the government of the different countries of the world is encouraging the home owners and the industry bodies to make use of the solar panels and harness the power of the sun. Subsidies are also being provided for the same. Hence the solar panel technology is making way and penetrating the markets at a very rapid pace with an ever-increasing popularity. Even the White house has the installations made up of the solar panels and the solar water heating systems. Now, it can be viewed upon as just being a matter of time, when the citizens of USA will follow their beloved President Barrack Obama and install solar panels at their premises. Once the technology and usage of solar panels become popular in USA, it won’t be a matter of time when the same spreads into the markets of the followers like Europe and Asia. In the next few years, solar panels, with its beaming pace going to overtake the energy markets for the fossil fuels like coal. Related articles
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