Finally : cheap DIY selfmade solar cell with common materials !

[infringer]

Here is a proposal for you folks some TIO2+Diatom Powder+Iodine diatoms or fossils of algae are already proven to increase energy out by 3x the amount.

Check out science channels the future of videos for the reference.

Easy test would be to take a solar cell purchase some diatom powder then dillute it with water use eye dropper to apply to surface of cell let air dry on complete surface then test output under same light source.

ENJOY finally cheap power increase may be in our grasp!

I would still like to see if piezoelectric materials would not increase the output as well...

[The Architect]

this is something I have thought about in the past and my thoughts on it were this.

with solar cells there is three layers that MUST exist.

a P which is a layer of positively active or basically a layer of atoms that have a need for electrons. the way I have always seen this is that there is a certain amount of electrons all atoms want in their outer most shell. this amount actually though is in two areas. so they can either gain electrons if they do not have it or loose them.

so say we fill a doping agent like clear lacquer with something that is positively charged. the lacquer needs to be mostly silicone or carbon based so that it is neutral. once the positive materials are added then the whole mess becomes positive and wants to absorb electrons.

make a second batch of this stuff but substitute a negatively charged substance (has enough electrons and wants to drop as it is easier thus it is trying to give those electrons away)

and ofcourse we need a third doped material that has a balance so it becomes a barrier. the barrier needs to be thin right? so how about a thinner in it so that when it all drys up it leaves an even coat of it but is extremely thin.

once you have all of this you need a base to place it all on and it should be conductive, as well as have a color to it. darker the better. the dark substance can be suspended though too in one of the two doped layers.

here is the trick too on choosing the doping agents, they must not only be either negative or positive but also you need to look at the frequency of light it interacts with. the more of that frequency in the light you are using to generate the electricity the more electricity or electrons the doping agents will absorb or give off. so if you choose something in the blue spectrum for the top (best as blue can be killed easier than red) then you should choose something that is effected by red for the bottom layer. the middle layer should be as clear as possible.

so for argument sake we use a plate of aluminum for the plate to apply everything to.

next we spray paint on the doped negatively charged substance.
let it dry then spray on the barrier substance.
again let this dry and then spray on the positive charged substance.

the last layer on all of this is going to be the collection or release frame wich is just a bunch of collectivly  connected traces of something conductive. I have not looked so I am not sure what charge the aluminum is so that should be checked on as well. each metal is positively or negatively prone thus why acids and differning metals make batteries. you would want though something on both sides that is not only opposing but also inert to oxidation at least to the solar cells P and N layered materials both doping and substrate substances.

real trick is if you use a flexible paint and dope it with fine powdered metal to get it to conduct power you could make solar cells that are nothing more than stickers. imagine being able to just peel and stick as much solar power as you need on something like a car or the roof of an RV.

[The Architect]

also not sure if you are aware of this but LCDs use polarized plastics. and polarized plastics basically have iodine a metal absorbed into it then the plastic is stretched and stretched like taffy and folded to get it to force the iodine to form fibrous filaments all running in parallel to each other, then when light strikes these since they are running one way and not another they produce a counter active photonic output negating those photos matching in one direction but allow the the others to slip through. the polarity of the light it emits or blocks is solely based on the direction the fibers run and what direction they are turned.

[hartiberlin]

Here is a new video of NurdRage how to make a selfmade Graetzel solar cell:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FrdUlPM4x0Y

I wonder, if it would be possible just to use stainless steel mesh as the electrodes..

Just sinter the TiO2 between this stainless steel mesh and also put  graphite onto the other stainless steel mesh electrode.. I guess this should also work then...

This would dramatically reduce the costs...
Then one would only need to find a better and more stable dye
with higher efficiency...

So the sun can go into the holes of the stainless steel mesh and go into the dye soaked
TiO2 with electrolyte around it.

I will try it soon.

Regards, Stefan.

[hartiberlin]

Well, I thought, that the PN layer nessessary for the bandgap to convert the light to
electricity was in the ITO layer versus the TiO2,
but NurdRage told me in a private mail,
that he also succeeded in making a solar cell by sintering the TiO2 on a Titanium electrode !

So this is very interesting.

It seems the real photo to electricity conversion then really takes place
in the dye soaked TiO2 and with the Iodide electrolyte.

The electrodes seem to play a minor role then..

Regards, Stefan.

P.S. for this other experiment NurdRage used Titanium and Platinum
electrodes.