Solar panels of the future: experimental cell exceeds “100%” thanks to a quantum trick

A team of researchers has reported achieving around 130% so‑called quantum efficiency in an experimental solar cell, a milestone long considered nearly unreachable. This does not mean any violation of the laws of energy conservation: the scientists managed to generate more charge carriers than incident photons thanks to a specific quantum process called singlet fission.​

The core idea is the use of a special metal–organic complex that, after absorbing a photon, in its excited state “splits” into two triplet excitations. Put simply, a single light quantum can produce a pair of excited particles, which then turn into electric current. This is what allows the internal quantum efficiency to reach roughly 130%, meaning more charge carriers are created than the number of absorbed photons.​

The experimental samples are still far from mass production: prototypes require highly stable materials, precise control of structure, and careful integration with conventional silicon elements. Nevertheless, the stable demonstration of such a high figure is seen as a breakthrough that could pave the way for a new generation of solar panels. In the future, combining traditional silicon with additional layers based on organic compounds could significantly boost the real‑world efficiency of commercial modules without radically increasing their cost.​

Another key direction is the search for materials capable of exhibiting singlet fission across a wide spectral range while maintaining chemical stability. If such systems can be adapted to industrial manufacturing, the energy sector will gain a powerful tool to “harvest” solar radiation more densely, which is especially important given the growing demand for renewable sources.