44% efficient solar cells! World record:

http://phys.org/news/2014-04-multilayer-microscale-solar-cells-enable.html

Fantastic!

I particularly like where it says:

“...As a result of these new efficiencies, external industry experts project solar energy electricity generation costs that can reach, without subsidies, levels that are lower than coal, natural gas, and nuclear...”

-that will make it hard for governments and oil companies etc who are against solar to block its use! How are they going to be able to stop it now? the anti-renewable pro-oil people have lost and we have won both the argument and, soon, in terms of the the practical application. They certainly will not going to continue with their usual propaganda crap with the now thoroughly debunked "renewables will never be cost-effective" line!
Solar, here we come!

Originally posted by humy
Fantastic!

I particularly like where it says:

“...As a result of these new efficiencies, external industry experts project solar energy electricity generation costs that can reach, without subsidies, levels that are lower than coal, natural gas, and nuclear...”

-that will make it hard for governments and oil companies etc who are against solar to block ...[text shortened]... have won both the argument and in terms of the the practical application.
Solar, here we come!

The only caveat I see is in the photo's themselves, which may be amenable to better engineering, is the relative size of the cells themselves to the total area of the carriers, it won't help to make 90% efficient cells if they only occupy 10% of the total area in the chip, that would make it = a chip 9% efficient but full size.

If they are stuck with that, I guess they can come up with some kind of concentration scheme that matches the cells, be complex optically however.

I think though that this is just a lab result and the engineering boys will work that one out.