Oxford University professor unveils new perovskite crystal solar panels

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 Chances are, very few of us will have heard of Professor Henry Snaith before, but if his new solar panels take off in the way some are suggesting they will, he could soon be a household name - in the solar industry at least!


After completing his bachelor’s degree in physics, Prof Snaith did a PhD in photovoltaics at Cambridge. In 2013, Nature, a British weekly scientific journal, named him on its list of ‘ten people who mattered’, in recognition of his next gen solar power research. He also became one of the youngest-ever Fellows of The Royal Society in 2015.


“As a child I was very aware of global warming, the impact we’ve had and the problems of intensive farming and deforestation. It’s always been my agenda and I’ve been driven by that. After my undergraduate studies I wanted to work on something useful for society, and I thought energy was a big issue we needed to solve.”


That lifelong passion for the environment and depth of study into the solar energy topics has paid off for Professor Snaith, and potentially all of us in time. As the most recent recipient of the Becquerel Prize, widely recognised as Europe’s most revered photovoltaics award, Snaith and his work at Oxford Photovoltaics has been given a huge boost in terms of awareness and potential impact.


What sets the work of Professor Snaith apart is his research into the use of a special type of crystal that could revolutionise the performance of solar panels. The use of perovskite crystals in solar cells has the potential to allow for much more efficient and affordable energy generation.


On receiving that award, Snaith sharedd: "I am honoured to receive this prestigious award. I am excited about the future of perovskite photovoltaics and its role in the clean energy transition. Perovskite PV has demonstrated its immense opportunity to transform solar energy generation. I am especially looking forward to the next 12 months and seeing our first commercial perovskite-silicon solar product on the market."


It remains to be seen how many solar panel manufacturers and suppliers begin to make use of perovskite as part of their product range, but with Snaith and his team leading the way, it offers a fantastic opportunity for us to see solar energy generation become an even more attractive solution for homes and businesses around the UK.

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