artience Develops Colorless Solar Cells Generating Power From Near-Infrared Light

artience Co., Ltd. joined a research group from the University of Osaka, the University of Tokyo and Aoyama Gakuin University to develop a colorless, transparent organic solar cell (OSC) that generates electricity from invisible near-infrared light. The team built an organic semiconductor material that absorbs almost no visible light, and the solar cells kept high visible transparency while achieving external quantum efficiencies above 20% in the near-infrared range. The results are to be published online in the Journal of the American Chemical Society on August 4.

Key facts

Market context

Organic photovoltaics use carbon-based semiconductor films instead of silicon, which makes them lightweight, flexible and printable on large areas. Most current organic solar cells absorb visible light, so they look colored or dark. Materials that absorb mainly invisible near-infrared light allow a cell to stay see-through while still producing electricity, a property that matters for window glazing, vehicle glass and small wearable or sensor devices. Demand for such products would come mainly from building and automotive glass, where transparency is essential, and from electronics makers seeking self-powered devices. For chemical suppliers, a new class of transparent semiconductor would mean specialty synthesis, tighter purity control and application-specific formulations rather than commodity volumes. Adoption would depend on durability, efficiency at scale and cost, so this remains an early-stage research development rather than an immediate shift in supply or pricing.

Source: official release on artiencegroup.com. Summary and context written by Market Krystal.