A New Strategy for Cheap Solar Power in Africa: Pokeberries

Pokeberries, whose red dye was famously used by Civil War soldiers to write letters home, may enable the distribution of worldwide solar power. Researchers at Wake Forest University's Center for Nanotechnology and Molecular Materials are using the red dye from this weedy plant's berries to coat their high-efficient, fiber-based solar cells, licensed by FiberCell, Inc. These fiber cells are composed of millions of tiny fibers that maximize the cell's surface area and trap light at almost any angle--so the slanting sun rays of morning and evening aren't wasted. The dye's absorbent qualities enhance the fibers' ability to trap sunlight, allowing the fiber cells to produce nearly twice the power that flat-cell technology produces. Because pokeberries can grow in almost any climate, they can be raised by residents in developing countries "who can make the dye absorber for the extremely efficient fiber cells and provide energy where power lines don’t run," ...