ATMOS develops low-cost spray-on solar panels

The devices, invented by Cheshire-based company ATMOS, are made from a mixture of metal oxide coatings deposited onto common building materials such as concrete.

Although such a system is unlikely to be as efficient at producing electricity as conventional silicon devices, it can be used to create much larger and more robust solar diodes.

ATMOS has licensed the technology to new company Teckhne, part of Universal Master Products, which will work with King’s College London, UCL and Manchester Metropolitan University to develop it into a commercial product.

‘The devices can be made by a very simple, low-cost method without clean-room conditions and the only by-products are water vapour and carbon dioxide,’ Jeffery Boardman, inventor and ATMOS managing director, told The Engineer.

Teckhne expects that the technology will more likely be used to create large-scale solar farms, rather than for micro-generation by individuals.

‘You can get more efficient solar panels but they’re so expensive no one can afford to buy them,’ said Guy Lamstaes, chief executive officer of Teckhne. ‘If space isn’t a problem but cost is, then this technology is perfect.’