Solar Energy Information
History
The USA may never enjoy the prosperity we have historically seen until we totally free ourselves from our dependency on oil from countries in the Middle East. Oil is literally a dinosaur technology and yet we continue to subsidize this archaic fuel supply when we should be funding research and production improvements in renewable energy source systems - like solar!
The modern history of the solar battery started In the early 1950s when R.S. Ohl discovered that sunlight striking a wafer of silicon produced unexpectedly large numbers of free electrons. In 1954, G.L. Pearson, C.S. Fuller, and D.M. Chapin created an array of several strips of silicon (each about the size of a razor blade), placed them in sunlight, captured the free electrons and turned them into electrical current. This was the first solar battery.
Bell Laboratories unveiled the first modern solar cell, using a silicon semiconductor to convert light into electricity. A 1954 New York Times article predicted that solar cells would eventually lead "to the realization of one of mankind's most cherished dreams -- the harnessing of the almost limitless energy of the sun.''
As early as 1962, the world's first communications satellite was using photovoltaic arrays to recharge batteries and power equipment. But the space market was small and never created enough demand for solar cells to drive down costs. That's why solar cells remained pricey, while computer chips became affordable so fast.
Over the last 20 years, improvements in manufacturing techniques gradually lowered the costs of solar cells, widening their use, which in turn has led to further expansions in the market and further economies of scale.
Sharp took the reigns with the attitude "Make products that others want to imitate", a belief that continues today at Sharp. Sharp began research on solar cells in 1959.
At the time, solar was heralded as the next new technology after television. This was long before environmental concerns became a popular issue, and despite the establishment of mass-production technologies, the production scale was quite small - accordingly, so were profits. Still, Sharp understood the potential of solar power as a form of renewable energy and continued efforts toward perfecting solar power generation technology.
By the end of 2007, Sharp reached 2 gigawatts of cumulative solar cell production volume, more than any other company in the world.
- 1963: Mass production of solar cells began. In 1966, a 225-watt generating facility was constructed for a lighthouse on Ogami Island in Nagasaki Prefecture, the world's largest solar power system at the time.
- 1967: Sharp began developing solar cells for use in outer space.
- 1994: Sharp began mass production of solar electric systems for residential use, with subsequent increases in production.
- 2005: Sharp begins manufacturing thin-film solar cells.
- 2009: Sharp plans to open the Sakai plant, a new facility in Osaka producing thin-film solar cells. The yearly production will be equivalent to 1 GW generation capacity.
Solar Energy Timeline Link
Technologies
Sharp is the #1 manufacturer of solar cells worldwide with nearly as much generating capacity as the next three largest manufacturers combined. Their residential solar systems give families the ability to generate their own electricity from the inexhaustible energy of the sun - with no harmful emissions. They're cost-effective, quiet, attractive, safe, and reliable, with only minimal maintenance required over their long operational life. They're the right choice for your home and the right choice for the environment. Ask us about installing Sharp technologies for you.
Solar Energy Topics Link