The recent discovery that butterfly wings have tiny scales that act as solar collectors has led scientists in Japan and China to design a more efficient solar cell that could be used for power in the future.
Using natural butterfly wings as a template, the scientists were able to make copies of the solar collecting scales and transfer those to dye-sensitive solar cells.
Tests showed the solar collectors made with the butterfly wing scale design absorbed more light efficiently than conventional dye-sensitized cells.
The process of making these solar cells is also simpler and faster than other methods, and could be used to produce commercially valuable devices in the future.
Image credit: Onion on flicker Creative Commons.
