[citation needed] It was a 3000 km race across the Australian outback where competitors from industry research groups and top universities around the globe were invited to compete.

In 1883 Charles Fritts built the first solid state photovoltaic cell by coating the semiconductor selenium with a thin layer of gold to form the junctions; the device was only around 1% efficient.

Some newer technology implemented on satellites are multi-junction photovoltaic cells, which are composed of different p–n junctions with varying bandgaps in order to utilize a wider spectrum of the sun's energy.

[20] In 2020, the US Naval Research Laboratory conducted its first test of solar power generation in a satellite, the Photovoltaic Radio-frequency Antenna Module (PRAM) experiment aboard the Boeing X-37.

The team also replaced the expensive materials and hand wiring used in space applications with a printed circuit board on the back, acrylic plastic on the front, and silicone glue between the two, "potting" the cells.

[38] The widespread introduction of flat screen televisions in the late 1990s and early 2000s led to the wide availability of large, high-quality glass sheets to cover the panels.

In 2008, according to Jef Poortmans, director of IMEC's organic and solar department, current cells use 8–9 grams (0.28–0.32 oz) of silicon per watt of power generation, with wafer thicknesses in the neighborhood of 200 microns.

The illuminated side of a solar cell generally has a transparent conducting film for allowing light to enter into the active material and to collect the generated charge carriers.

[65] In 2017, a team of researchers at National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL), EPFL and CSEM (Switzerland) reported record one-sun efficiencies of 32.8% for dual-junction GaInP/GaAs solar cell devices.

Solar cells can be made of a single layer of light-absorbing material (single-junction) or use multiple physical configurations (multi-junctions) to take advantage of various absorption and charge separation mechanisms.

Despite the fact that their efficiencies had been low and the stability of the absorber material was often too short for commercial applications, there is research into these technologies as they promise to achieve the goal of producing low-cost, high-efficiency solar cells.

[90][91] In 2016, a new approach was described for producing hybrid photovoltaic wafers combining the high efficiency of III-V multi-junction solar cells with the economies and wealth of experience associated with silicon.

[100][101][102] Photonic front contacts for light management can improve the perovskite cells' performance, via enhanced broadband absorption, while allowing better operational stability due to protection against the harmful high-energy (above Visible) radiation.

[106][107][108] In 1980, Andrés Cuevas, a PhD student in Luque's team, demonstrated experimentally a 50% increase in output power of bifacial solar cells, relative to identically oriented and tilted monofacial ones, when a white background was provided.

[111][112] The results indicate that, across the globe, ground-mounted bifacial modules can only offer ~10% gain in annual electricity yields compared to the monofacial counterparts for a ground albedo coefficient of 25% (typical for concrete and vegetation groundcovers).

[116] Several means are under study to realize IB semiconductors with such optimum 3-bandgap configuration, namely via materials engineering (controlled inclusion of deep level impurities or highly-mismatched alloys) and nano-structuring (quantum-dots in host hetero-crystals).

[117] In 2014, researchers at California NanoSystems Institute discovered using kesterite and perovskite improved electric power conversion efficiency for solar cells.

Using ink-based materials and scalable techniques, researchers coat the solar cell structure with printable electronic inks, completing the module with screen-printed electrodes.

DSSC's can be engineered into flexible sheets and although its conversion efficiency is less than the best thin film cells, its price/performance ratio may be high enough to allow them to compete with fossil fuel electrical generation.

[128] In an effort to decrease production costs, the Prashant Kamat research group[129] demonstrated a solar paint made with TiO2 and CdSe that can be applied using a one-step method to any conductive surface with efficiencies over 1%.

[134] In 2011, MIT and Michigan State researchers developed solar cells with a power efficiency close to 2% with a transparency to the human eye greater than 65%, achieved by selectively absorbing the ultraviolet and near-infrared parts of the spectrum with small-molecule compounds.

Etching single crystalline silicon substrate can produce randomly distributed square based pyramids on the surface using anisotropic etchants.

[147] In combination with anti-reflective coating, surface texturing technique can effectively trap light rays within a thin film silicon solar cell.

For instance, in 2019 via wet-chemically etched nanowires and a hydrophobic coating on the surface water droplets could remove 98% of dust particles, which may be especially relevant for applications in the desert.

The IEA's 2022 Special Report highlights China's dominance over the solar PV supply chain, with an investment exceeding USD 50 billion and the creation of around 300,000 jobs since 2011.

[164] Meeting global energy and climate targets necessitates a major expansion in solar PV manufacturing, aiming for over 630 GW by 2030 according to the IEA's "Roadmap to Net Zero Emissions by 2050".

China's dominance, controlling nearly 95% of key solar PV components and 40% of the world's polysilicon production in Xinjiang, poses risks of supply shortages and cost surges.

Other key producers included Vietnam (5%), Malaysia (4%), Korea (4%), and Thailand (2%), with much of their production capacity developed by Chinese companies aimed at exports, notably to the United States.

However, the solar market in the Middle East and Africa also faces several obstacles, including social unrest, regulatory uncertainty and technical barriers.

Solar cells in extreme climates, such as desert or polar, are more prone to degradation due to exposure to harsh UV light and snow loads respectively.