Even if you don’t exactly understand the physics behind how a solar panel works, you know it collects energy from the sun and transmits it into usable energy. Or maybe you don’t. Nevertheless, the problem with these solar (sun, anyone?) panels/collectors was that they cannot collect and transmit energy at night.
At least not anymore. Researchers at the Idaho National Laboratory have found a way to collect energy from the sun during both day and night. They twisted and molded millions of tiny pieces of metal into micro-antennas that can be fitted onto any material. The spiraled micro-antennas are about 1/25 the width of a human hair — so small that they resonate with the infrared rays of the sun.
Because this material soaks up so much energy during the day, they continue resonating at night, which collects even more [non-usable] energy. Although the panel can collect energy, scientists are still trying to figure out a way to transmit the rays into usable energy. The nano-antennas generate a current that has a frequency which oscillates ten thousand billion times a second. This frequency is way too much for the average appliance to handle, but the scientists think they can find a solution.
From the research they’ve done so far, they think they can hit an efficiency rating of 80%. It also is extremely cheap, since the process does not rely on traditional high-grade silicon.
Of course, why don’t we just build an air tree like Madrid did. It’s more attractive than a sheet of metal, anway!