For a long time, solar cells and batteries have worked as partners, as separate devices. One captures light, the other stores the electricity. Now, researchers have blurred that boundary with a breakthrough that could reshape how we power portable electronics.
A new study presents a highly efficient all-perovskite solar-battery system; a device that doesn’t just generate power from sunlight but also stores it directly. The secret ingredient is a clever chemical known as a dual-function viologen, which acts both as a stabiliser for the solar cell and as part of the battery itself.
Why This Matters
Anyone who has juggled a phone, power bank, and charger knows the frustration of today’s fragmented energy solutions. This research points to a future where a single slim device could both harvest the sun and keep energy stored for when you need it.
For engineers, the significance is bigger: by integrating solar and storage at the material level, the system avoids efficiency losses that normally occur when electricity has to pass between two separate devices. The result? A compact power source that delivers both high efficiency and long-term stability.
What’s New Here
- All-perovskite design: These emerging solar materials are cheaper and more flexible than silicon, and can be tuned to capture light with high efficiency.
- Dual-function chemistry: The viologen molecule serves a double role—stabilising the solar cell while also participating in the redox reactions that store energy.
- Portable promise: The prototype demonstrates that such integrated devices could realistically power small electronics—think wearables, sensors, or off-grid gadgets.
The Bigger Picture
While the prototype is designed for portable devices, the principle has far-reaching implications. If scaled up, integrated solar-batteries could reduce the need for separate solar panels and storage units in some applications, cutting costs and simplifying design. For a world moving towards renewable energy, every innovation that makes power more efficient, more compact, and more resilient helps accelerate the transition.
The Takeaway
This isn’t just another tweak to solar cells or batteries—it’s a step towards merging them into a single technology. With perovskites providing efficient light capture and dual-function molecules enabling storage, we may soon see devices that truly carry their own sunshine.
Source
Highly efficient all-perovskite photovoltaic-powered battery with dual-function viologen for portable electronics, Nature Energy, 2025-08-27
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