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Deriving plentiful electricity from sunlight at a modest cost is a challenge with immense implications for energy, technology and climate policy. A new article describes a relatively new approach to solar cells: lacing them with nanoscopic metal particles. The method helps solar cells harvest light more efficiently.

Wind and wave data from ESA's Envisat satellite radar are being used to observe meteorological conditions in the track of the Vendee Globe solo round-the-world yacht race.

Biofuels, nuclear energy and coal are the worst choices for energy alternatives to petroleum products and wind, solar, geothermal, tides and waves are the best, according to results from the first quantitative, scientific evaluation of the proposed, major, energy-related solutions that assesses not only their potential for delivering energy for electricity and vehicles, but also their impacts on global warming, human health, energy security, water supply, space requirements, wildlife, water pollution, reliability and sustainability.

Biofuels, nuclear energy and coal are the worst choices for energy alternatives to petroleum products and wind, solar, geothermal, tides and waves are the best, according to results from the first quantitative, scientific evaluation of the proposed, major, energy-related solutions that assesses not only their potential for delivering energy for electricity and vehicles, but also their impacts on global warming, human health, energy security, water supply, space requirements, wildlife, water pollution, reliability and sustainability.

New ways of squeezing out greater efficiency from solar photovoltaic cells are emerging from computer simulations and lab tests conducted by a team of physicists and engineers.

Currently solar cells are difficult to handle, expensive to purchase and complicated to install. The hope is that consumers will one day be able to buy solar cells from their local hardware store and simply hang them like posters on a wall. A recent study has shown that the dream is one step closer to reality.

Researchers have shed light on a basic process that could improve future solar cells. They have now directly measured the rate of hole transfer between identical porphyrin compounds in their ground states. These results are key to understanding the fundamental processes underlying charge separation and have applications for improving the efficiency of solar cells.

Scientists from leading European research institutions in the field of solar-to-fuel energy conversion call for unified action and substantial support for novel clean fuel technologies as well as a paradigm change in Europe's current energy policy. This is crucial if Europe is to maintain its environmental stability and economic development.

Slow-moving ocean and river currents could be a new, reliable and affordable alternative energy source. Engineers have made a machine that works like a fish to turn potentially destructive vibrations in fluid flows into clean, renewable power.

Scientists have developed photovoltaic multi-junction solar cells which are able to convert 39.7% of the energy of sun light into electricity. This is the highest percentage ever reached in Europe, according to researchers.

Scientists have made electronics that can bend. They've made electronics that can stretch. And now, they've reached the ultimate goal -- electronics that can be subjected to any complex deformation, including twisting. Researchers have improved their so-called "pop-up" technology to create circuits that can be twisted. Such electronics could be used in places where flat, unbending electronics would fail, like on the human body.

Engineers in Spain have developed an algorithm that can optimize hybrid electricity generation systems through combined use of renewable energies, such as photovoltaic and wind power, and non-renewables, such as diesel. Their study envisions storing the energy in batteries or hydrogen tanks.

Scientists have induced electrons in the nanocrystals of semiconductors to cool more slowly by forcing them into a smaller volume. This has the potential to improve satellite communications and the generation of solar power. Slowing down the cooling of these electrons -- in this case, by more than 30 times -- could lead to a better infrared laser source and increase the bandwidth of communication satellites. It also could lead to more efficient photovoltaic devices.

Researchers in China and Switzerland are reporting the highest efficiency ever for a promising new genre of solar cells, which many scientists think offer the best hope for making the sun a mainstay source of energy in the future. The photovoltaic cells, called dye-sensitized solar cells or Grätzel cells, could expand the use of solar energy for homes, businesses, and other practical applications, the scientists say.

Scientists are developing composite materials based on semiconductor nanoparticles and carbon nanotubes for use in efficient light emitting diodes and photovoltaic devices.

Some of the tiniest solar cells ever built have been successfully tested as a power source for even tinier microscopic machines -- for example, an inch-long array of 20 of these cells, each one about a quarter the size of a lowercase "o" in a standard 12-point font.

Researchers have developed a measurement technique that will help scientists and companies map nanomaterials as they grow. The discovery could help create superior nanotechnologies and lead to the development of more efficient solar panels and increased magnetic data storage.

Researchers have discovered and demonstrated a new method for overcoming two major hurdles facing solar energy. By developing a new antireflective coating that boosts the amount of sunlight captured by solar panels and allows those panels to absorb the entire solar spectrum from nearly any angle, the research team has moved academia and industry closer to realizing high-efficiency, cost-effective solar power.

Scientists have created the first silicon solar cell to achieve 25 percent efficiency following a revision of the international standard.

Researchers have created a new material that overcomes two of the major obstacles to solar power: it absorbs all the energy contained in sunlight, and generates electrons in a way that makes them easier to capture. Chemists combined electrically conductive plastic with metals including molybdenum and titanium to create the hybrid material.