In the last few years, interest in solar power has increased exponentially, with homeowners and commercial building managers alike keen to invest in installing solar panels that can not only lead to considerable but protect yourself from future volatility in the energy market.
It took a long time to reach a point where solar panels can convert a third of the sunlight that hits it into electricity, allowing for more power to be generated with fewer panels and less space.
It is a far cry from the one per cent energy efficiency the very first solar panel was able to convert, something which at the time was seen as a monumental watershed moment for solar power.
The reason for this is that after nearly half a century of trying, Charles Fritts managed to create a solar array that fits on a rooftop and actually worked to generate energy from the sun, turning an interesting phenomenon into a promising new source of power.
From Theory To Reality
The first ever solar cell was technically invented by Edmond Becquerel, father of the man who discovered radioactivity, who developed a solar panel as an experimental device to prove that light could be used as a way to create an electrical charge.
In 1839, at the age of just 19, he developed a photovoltaic cell using platinum electrodes and a coating of silver chloride that created an electrical current when exposed to light. To this day the photovoltaic effect is also known as the Becquerel effect in his honour.
However, for nearly three decades, nobody could even replicate his experiment, as the voltage generated was so small that it was difficult to even observe.
This changed in 1873 thanks to Willoughby Smith, who discovered the photovoltaic properties of selenium, something that was finally replicated three years later by Richard Evans Day and William Grylls Adams.
Charles Fritts, an American inventor born in Boston but based in New York City, took this concept a step further and started to build bigger solar cells made from selenium, using an exceptionally thin layer of gold to complete the circuit.
These solar cells were fit to a rooftop in New York City and did function, although it must be noted that whilst they worked and were thus a landmark in the history of solar power, they were atrociously inefficient, only converting one per cent of the sunlight they received into power.
This was devastating for Mr Fritts, who genuinely saw his invention as an alternative to the coal power plants favoured by Thomas Edison.
However, this did not only lay the groundwork for the future of solar panels given that there was proof that they worked, but they also ended up providing a place for solar cells in the present.
Whilst they were not powerful enough to be an alternative energy source, particularly since selenium and gold are prohibitively expensive components, they were exceptionally useful as light sensors, which as the camera increased in popularity and sophistication led to the principle having near-constant use.
By the 1940s, with the advent of the silicon solar panel, Mr Fritts’ ideas received vindication, even if he tragically died in 1903, long before he could receive the credit he deserved.
The First Rooftop Solar Panel
The first rooftop solar panel was installed in 1884 by Charles Fritts, an American inventor who wanted to turn sunlight into electricity.
How Did It Work?
Fritts used a thin layer of gold on a metal called selenium to create the panel. It didn’t make much power, but it showed that solar energy could work.
Why Was It Important?
This was the first time someone used a rooftop to collect sunlight and make electricity. It was a big step toward today’s modern solar panels.
A Look at the Past
Even though the technology was simple back then, it started a clean energy idea that is now helping the world reduce pollution and save energy.
