Tandem

Apple’s work on advanced artificial intelligence integrations in its products is continuing to pick up pace, with a newly published paper from its research teams revealing the iPhone maker’s work on MM1, a suite of Multimodal Large Language Models.The paper, titled ‘MM1: Methods, Analysis & Insights from Multimodal LLM Pre-training’ discusses “building performant Multimodal Large Language Models (MLLMs),” and how “pre-training using a careful mix of image-caption, interleaved image-text, and text-only data is crucial…

KAUST scientists have developed a roadmap for commercializing highly efficient perovskite/silicon tandem solar cells, promising a future of affordable clean energy. Addressing challenges from real-world application to manufacturing, they aim to transform the global energy landscape, with the technology’s market value expected to exceed $10 billion within ten years. Credit: 2024 KAUSTResearchers at King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST) have developed a comprehensive plan to introduce perovskite/silicon…

Grenoble-based eBikeLabs, a French startup that has been working on embedded software for electric bikes, is suing Cowboy for patent infringement and, more generally, copying eBikeLabs’ technology in its latest feature, AdaptivePower. Cowboy, the Belgian electric bike manufacturer, has refuted all the allegations and even said that eBikeLabs is running a smear campaign. There have been others tracking this saga. Now, TechCrunch has received some new information about a meeting that took place between the two…

Making solar cells more efficient is an obvious win for green energy. It means more electricity from the same number of panels and the same amount of sunlight – and scientists are working hard to take on the challenge.Now a team from the King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST) in Saudi Arabia has achieved a record level of efficiency with what's known as a 'tandem' solar cell: one that combines two different materials.Several materials can work in solar panels, each with its own properties and…

The dynamic duo of silicon and perovskite continue their rampage through the solar cell industry. Researchers at King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST) have developed a new silicon/perovskite tandem solar cell with a record-breaking efficiency.Most commercial solar cells have traditionally been made with silicon as the active ingredient, and this has gotten the tech into widespread use. But unfortunately, these solar cells are starting to bump up against the physical limits of silicon’s efficiency, so…

Changes in heat stress days at >32 °C (derived from ERA5-Land datasets), deviations in precipitation in January the wettest month (CHIRPS), and aridity (ERA5 Land/MODIS) in Madagascar. Credit: Carmen Morales, FAO Rapid access to information is one of the largest barriers we have to deal with as a group of people in the Internet Age. Earth Map is a free application designed to be easily used and accessible to anyone with an…

Perovskite and silicon are proving to be a formidable duo in the world of solar cells, and now they’ve hit a new record efficiency. A team at Helmholtz Zentrum Berlin (HZB) have developed solar cells with an efficiency of over 32%.Silicon has long been the industry standard for solar cells, thanks to its efficiency, durability and cost, but current devices are approaching the theoretical maximum limit of efficiency. Perovskite, meanwhile, is a young upstart that’s quickly risen through the ranks and threatens to steal the…

Engineers have developed a new solar cell with a record voltage and (arguably) a record efficiency for its kind. The all-perovskite tandem solar cell uses two layers of perovskite that tap into different wavelengths of light, plus a special surface treatment that reduces wasted energy.In the field of photovoltaics, perovskite is a particularly promising material that’s gunning for silicon’s crown. Not only is it great at absorbing energy from sunlight, but it’s thinner, lighter, more flexible, and easier and cheaper to…

Venture capitalist and technology investor Peter Thiel is “pro-crypto” and “pro-Bitcoin” to the max, but he also believes that cryptocurrency may be undermining America. According to Fortune , Thiel has urged the Joe Biden government to consider stricter regulations on cryptocurrencies . “I wonder if Bitcoin should also be considered in part as a Chinese financial weapon against the United States ,” Thiel said during an appearance at a virtual event held for members of the Richard Nixon Foundation. “It…

Considerable performance gains in perovskite–silicon tandem solar cells (such as that pictured here) can be achieved by adding a magnesium fluoride interlayer. Credit: © 2022 KAUST; Erkan AydinAn extra metal fluoride layer enables charge separation and boosts performance in perovskite–silicon tandem solar cells.Inserting a metal fluoride layer in multilayered perovskite–silicon tandem solar cells can stall charge recombination and enhance performance, King Abdullah University of Science & Technology (KAUST)…