Researchers Overcome Hurdles in Search for Inexpensive Electronics and Solar Cells
MINNEAPOLIS — Researchers in the University of Minnesota’s College of Science and Engineering and the National Renewable Energy Laboratory in Golden, CO, have overcome technical hurdles in the quest for inexpensive, durable electronics and solar cells made with non-toxic chemicals. The research was published in the most recent issue of Nature Communications, an international online research journal.
The research team discovered a novel technology to produce a specialized type of ink from non-toxic nanometer-sized crystals of silicon, often called "electronic ink". This "electronic ink" could produce inexpensive electronic devices with techniques that essentially print it onto inexpensive sheets of plastic.