First Solar Panel Invented Year

The first working solar panels.

First solar panel invented year.

Charles fritts installed the first solar panels on new york city rooftop in 1884. The efficiency of a solar panel continued to improve over the next few decades making solar panels a whole lot more affordable. Courtesy of john perlin take a light step back to 1883 when new york inventor charles fritts created the first. In a way many physicists played a part in solar cell invention.

Solar panels were able to help astronauts as they began exploring the final frontier. Almost 50 years after the photovoltaic effect s discovery in 1883 american inventor charles fritz created the first working selenium solar cell 3though we use silicon in cells for modern solar panels this solar cell was a major precursor to the technology used today. He understood the benefits of solar energy predicting that solar panels would soon replace existing power stations. The big break though came in 1876 when william grylls adams along with his student richard evans day discovered that selenium an element discovered in 1817 would create an electrical current when exposed to light.

While working on the coating of platinum electrodes using silver chloride he discovered a rise in voltage on exposure to light. However solar cells as we know them today are made with silicon not selenium. Therefore the credit for the invention of the modern solar panel cannot go to a single individual entity. Russell ohl was the first inventor who created the silicon solar cell in 1941.

Just 7 years later charles fritts an american inventor created the first solar cell by layering selenium onto a gold backing. Scientists now know that collecting solar energy on a large scale is a real possibility. In 1880 charles fritts used gold plated selenium to produce the first solar cell which also had an efficiency of 1. However fritts thought that his solar cells were revolutionary.

The 1950s 60s solar panels powered space exploration. It all started in 1839 with 19 year old physicist named edmond becquerel. Therefore some consider the true invention of solar panels to be tied to daryl chapin calvin fuller and gerald pearson s creation of the silicon photovoltaic pv cell at bell labs in 1954.