Today’s solar panels generally are rigid silicon materials placed on top of residential homes and large utility solar farms.

But the opportunity exists for flexible, lightweight, thin-film photovoltaics (PVs) to play a role in the future of energy generation, according to new research from the U.S. Department of Energy’s National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL).

Thin-film technologies such as cadmium telluride (CdTe) and copper indium gallium selenide (CIGS), along with perovskites, could be ideal for generating electricity for unmanned drones, portable chargers and building facades.

NREL identified three high-value markets where flexible, thin-film solar panels could be an alternative to current technologies.

• Aerospace and drones: Satellites could be equipped with the flexible solar panels to help offset high launch costs. Additionally, drones could be kept aloft for long periods of time with solar panels that charge the drone while in-flight. These applications are typically limited in space and weight, making them ideal for solar panels.
• Portable charging: Portable charging has already been using PV technology for camping, preppers, emergency services and as an alternative to grid-charging connected devices. Using flexible solar panels on portable chargers could potentially open the market to millions of new units for the military, disaster relief workers and anywhere an outlet cannot be found.
• Ground transportation: Integrating PV into electric vehicles will compete with electricity coming from the grid, but they could also improve driving range. These smaller panels would need to be flexible enough to conform to the contours of the automobile.

NREL said the lower limit for a lightweight PV device is between 300 and 500 g/m². Additional weight would reduce reliability, durability and safety. A lightweight, flexible module could generate more than a kilowatt of electricity on something that weighs as little as just a few pounds, in contrast to conventional modules that might require 150 to 200 lb to generate power.

The full research can be found in the journal Nature Energy.