Last week, the world’s first solar battery was developed by a research team led by Professor Yiying Wu of Ohio State University. This new development in the field of solar power opens up possibilities for more efficient collection of the renewable energy, as this new device is able to both capture and store solar energy within the unit.

This new solar panel — like its predecessors — produces mobile electrons as a result of contact with sunlight. The solar cell is porous, which allows the electrons generated access to the lithium-ion battery by forming and breaking oxygen bonds to lithium ions. Wu describes the invention as a “breathing battery.”

The problem with the current solar panels is that they are connected to external battery units. Up to 20 percent of the power collected is lost in the exchange between panel and battery. This new solar battery, however, enables the device to be built directly into the solar panel itself. This will reduce the energy lost in the transfer from traditional solar cell to battery. The new device has the potential to reduce the cost of solar energy as well. There is also the possibility of building more compact solar-powered devices now that solar cells and batteries can be combined into one smaller unit.

Today, all renewable energy sources in the United States account for 20 percent of the country’s energy consumption, according to the National Broadcasting Company (NBC). Solar power is just one of these renewable sources, along with wind, biomass, geothermal and hydroelectric power.

But with this solar battery advancement, along with other breakthroughs in a string of improvements to solar power, there has been an 80 percent decrease in the cost of solar panels in the last five years alone. NBC suggests that this trend may continue, making solar power  more accessible and cost-effective.

Fortunately, with this cost decrease, more people are investing in solar energy. According to an International Energy Agency (IEA) report released last week, it is possible that solar power could surpass fossil fuels as the most significant source of electrical power by the year 2050. This prediction is contingent on the cost of solar energy continuing to decline over the coming years.