Really amazing are the innovative ways solar power is put into use. Now a team of scientists working in Sandia National Laboratories is focusing on exploring basic steps to make synthetic liquid fuel with the help of solar panels. The goal is that this will help considerably reduce carbon dioxide emissions.

There’s a lot of talk about making power meters and the electric grid “smart” enough to handle additional energy from solar panels. National Semiconductor wants to make the solar panels themselves smarter. They’ve developed a chip that integrates into the junction boxes of solar panels, optimizing power production.

Earlier last year, there were news about scientists dreaming of space-based solar panels, which were to capture the Sun’s energy and bring it to the Earth through microwaves, or lasers, and to provide the ultimate energy source for us.

In a market-friendly scenario, Nanosolar claims to be able to produce electricity at 5-6 cents/kilowatt hour almost as cheap as power from coal and at about one-third the cost of other solar power. Nanosolar claims: Nanosolar claims mass production of solar power will now become feasible with their differently manufactured solar panels.

Two drawbacks to solar power were cost and the bulk of the panels, but newer panels, called thin-film solar panels are lowering the cost of solar and allowing new types of solar panels to be made. Some are flexible and can either be rolled up or formed into roof tiles, so it’s hardly noticeable that you’re powering your home with the sun!

Solar energy solutions are paramount these days and yet solar technology used in homes is in its infancy and ungainly. Most conventional silicon cell photovoltaic solar panels are eyesores.However, there may soon be a less obtrusive, colorful and flexible alternative: the dye-sensitized solar cell or DSC panel.

In addition to the new SunPower E19 Series product line, the company is also offering its current 18 percent efficiency or greater solar panels in the SunPower E18 Series product line. This family of panels includes 96-cell and 72-cell configurations, ranging from 305-watts to 225-watts.