A Mix of Solar Cells and Stained Glass - Artistic energy

A mix of solar cells and stained glass sounds strange at first, but it really isn't. The mixture results in solar energy creation with the use of panels that are not the usually grey or black. Solar panels allow the creation of electricity in an environmentally friendly way without the use of fossil fuels. Since many people consider the usually black or grey panels to be offensive to the aesthetic eye, mixing solar sells and stained glass allows for more colorful solar panels that have some aesthetic value.

This new technology gives the solar panels the looks of works of art. It is basically the result of the mixture of nanoparticles and organic dyes that result in solar cells that can be a variety of colors or made into different designs. They would look decorative but they would really be functional sources of electricity as the solar cells would still function to convert sunlight into energy.

These solar cells are currently under development at the Fraunhofer Institute for Solar Energy Systems ISE. The current prototype is amber in color but they can be made in any color with any kind of design. This new technology will provide beauty to buildings and function as a form of decoration.

Traditionally, solar panels are mounted on the roofs of building or on nearby land. They are black-grey or blue-purple in color. All of this could change in the future due to this new technology. It will be possible to use the stained glass solar panels as windows in buildings. They will block the flow of light into the interior, but they will be generating electricity, while they look like beautiful stained glass windows.

It will also be possible to design business and other buildings with mosaic designed solar cells of different colors to make a design on the side of the building. While looking like artwork, the new technology will also be providing electricity to power the building.