Research project: Fluorescent solar collectors - Dormant - Dormant
Fluorescent Solar Collectors (FSC) are an effective way of reducing the cost of solar cells. FSCs consist of a clear material sheet doped with fluorescent dyes. The dye absorbs the incident sunlight, and the re-emitted photons are trapped by total internal reflection and directed toward a PV cell mounted on the edges of the collector. FSCs combine the high optical absorption of an organic dye with the energy conversion efficiency of a standard solar cell, resulting in a greatly reduced usage of the bulk semiconductor.