Standardized testing might fast-track indoor solar energy for sensible gadgets
by Clarence Oxford
Los Angeles CA (SPX) Oct 21, 2025
Researchers from Simon Fraser College’s (SFU) Faculty of Sustainable Power Engineering (SEE) have launched a brand new framework to standardize the testing of indoor photo voltaic technology-an advance that would speed up the deployment of self-powered sensible gadgets and enhance confidence in efficiency knowledge throughout the sphere.
Led by SEE professor Vincenzo Pecunia and his Sustainable Optoelectronics Analysis Group, the examine establishes a benchmark for correct, reproducible measurement of indoor photovoltaic (IPV) effectivity underneath real-world lighting situations. The work, lately revealed within the journal Joule, marks SFU’s first analysis article to seem within the high-impact power publication-and the college’s first journal cowl characteristic in Joule.
Indoor photovoltaics convert ambient gentle into electrical energy to energy small electronics akin to sensors, IoT methods and sensible gadgets. These applied sciences might scale back reliance on disposable batteries, which pose main environmental considerations attributable to their poisonous chemical elements and waste. Nonetheless, IPV testing has lengthy been hampered by inconsistent measurement strategies arising from the extensive variability of indoor lighting environments.
“IPV improvement requires correct, benchmarkable efficiency knowledge, which is at present hindered by inconsistencies in characterization and benchmarking strategies,” stated Pecunia. “The sphere at present faces a reliability disaster, with reported advances typically obscured by measurement inaccuracies.”
To sort out this, the SFU crew analyzed how various check setups and light-weight situations affect efficiency outcomes. They found that IPV effectivity readings can fluctuate dramatically underneath diffuse or scattered light-the kind most typical indoors-making knowledge troublesome to match between laboratories. The researchers developed a set of standardized testing methods to make sure IPV efficiency measurements stay dependable underneath reasonable lighting situations.
Their work additionally addresses a significant hole in the best way indoor gentle spectra are labeled. The examine revealed that merely describing a bulb as “heat white” or “cool white” is insufficient, as these labels cowl a whole bunch of spectral variations. To beat this, the group proposed a common “reference cell” that acts as a calibration tool-translating indoor lighting into standardized efficiency benchmarks throughout totally different analysis services.
By establishing a constant basis for IPV characterization and reporting, Pecunia and his crew intention to take away one of many key limitations to business adoption. Their tips are anticipated to assist researchers and producers design extra environment friendly gadgets able to harvesting gentle from on a regular basis indoor environments, powering the following technology of sensible, sustainable know-how.
Analysis Report:Accurate performance characterization, reporting, and benchmarking for indoor photovoltaics
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