No one questions the seriousness of the world's energy crisis, or the fact that solar cells, which harness power from the sun, can be an integral part of a global solution. However, for solar power to be an effective energy source, the scientific foundation must be created to enable fabrication of large areas of high-efficiency solar cells at low cost.
In a talk titled "Low Cost ‘Plastic' Solar Cells," Alan J. Heeger, the Nobel Prize-winning professor of physics and of materials at UCSB, will show how the discovery of ultrafast photoinduced electron transfer can allow for the technology necessary to produce low cost plastic solar cells with lifetimes long enough for rooftop applications.
The presentation will begin at 7:30 p.m. on Wednesday, February 18, at the First Presbyterian Church Fellowship Hall, 21 E. Constance St. in Santa Barbara. The cost is $8 for UCSB Affiliates and Chancellor's Council members and $10 for all others. Advance registration is recommended, and can be arranged by calling the UCSB Office of Community Relations at (805) 893-4388.
Heeger, who came to UCSB in 1982, was a founding member of the materials department, and a founding director of the Institute for Polymers and Organic Solids. He currently holds the Presidential Chair, serving as professor of physics and of materials.
Heeger has been published in more than 700 scientific journals, and is widely known for his pioneering research in –– and the co-founding of –– the field of semiconducting and metallic polymers. He is the recipient of numerous awards, including the Nobel Prize in Chemistry, which he received in 2002.
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