Researchers at Stanford University have used 3D printing to develop a novel device that could help boost solar arrays’ energy-capturing capabilities and remove the need for mechanized tracking systems.
Shaped like a tipless inverted pyramid, the team’s Axially Graded Index Lens (AGILE) device captures over 90% of the light it’s exposed to and funnels it in a way that trebles its brightness. Compared to existing solar arrays, which follow the sun across the sky, the AGILE can also catch light passively from any angle, lending it the potential to help make solar panels smaller, cheaper, and more efficient.
“We wanted to create something that takes in light and concentrates it at the same position, even as the source changes direction,” explains the device’s developer Nina Vaidya. “It’s a completely passive system – it doesn’t need energy to track the source or…
Solar energy output tripled using Stanford University’s 3D printed AGILE device
