Integrating a Photovoltaic Panel and a Battery Pack in One Module: From concept to prototype

Photovoltaic (PV) solar energy is variable and not completely predictable; therefore, different energy storage devices have been researched. Among the variety of options, electrochemical cells (commonly called batteries) are technically feasible because of their maturity and stability. However, PV-battery systems face multiple challenges such as...

Advanced Thin Layer Deposition of Materials for Li-ion Batteries via Electrospray

The remarkable physicist Richard P. Feynman once said, more than fifty years ago: ”the principles of physics, as far as I can see, do not speak against the possibility of maneuvering things atom by atom. It is not an attempt to violate any laws; it is something, in principle, that can be done; but in practice, it has not been done because we are...

Charge carrier transport at the nanoscale: Electron and hole transport in self-assembled discotic liquid crystals: Mobile ionic charges in nanocomposite solid electrolytes

This thesis explores some fundamental aspects of charge carrier transport at the nanoscale. The study is divided in two parts. In the first part, the structural, dynamical and vibrational properties of discotic liquid crystals are studied in relation to the potential of these self-assembled ‘mesophases’ to form molecular conducting wires....

Energy matching: Key towards the design of sustainable photovoltaic powered products

The starting point of this dissertation is the observation that today a vast amount of 'PV powered' products are already on the market. However, in these PV powered products quite often the choice of PV cells seems random and PV cells function mostly as add-on units to give the product a 'green' energy image. Because of this 'add-on' approach,...