Panasonic Industry — Amorton Solar Cells

Panasonic Industry Amorton Solar Cells

These small solar cells offer efficient, stand-alone power generation in wearable and smart home devices

The Panasonic Industry Amorton family is a range of amorphous silicon solar cells which provide the design flexibility to be used as a stand-alone power source in wearable devices and smart home applications.

Amorton amorphous silicon cells are thin, light and robust, so they can be used as the power source even for small items such as wristwatches and calculators.

These Panasonic solar cells can absorb up to 100 times more energy in the visible spectrum than the crystalline silicon solar cells which are used in large, roof-mounted solar panels. This means that they are effective power generators even under low-light conditions, such as indoors under the light from a fluorescent or LED lamp.

In general, amorphous solar cells are sensitive to light at wavelengths between 380nm and 780nm - similar to the spectrum of visible light. This means that the Amorton cells are an ideal power source in smart home applications, which can be operated easily, efficiently and with minimal maintenance when powered by harvested light energy rather than by battery or mains power.

The sensitivity of the Amorton cells to visible light also makes them useful as ambient light sensors.

Panasonic’s Amorton amorphous silicon cells offer great flexibility in mechanical and electrical design: they can be supplied in a wide variety of operating voltages, and in many forms and sizes, including round, square and complex shapes. Amorphous solar cells can even be bent or curved.

They can also be mounted on stainless steel or plastic film substrate, as well as on a conventional glass substrate. It is possible to create etched areas in the cells which consist of transparent glass.