MIT's solar cell towers double power output of flat panels

These concertina solar towers can generate more than double the solar power of a typical flat photovoltaic panel.
Researchers from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology found that the majority of solar research was going into improving the performance of cells, and bringing down their cost. Instead, they wanted to find out if the arrangement of the cells could improve their input.
To find the best layout, the team developed a piece of software that would simulate sunlight over different latitudes, seasons and weather. By running the algorithm through an enormous variety of possible configurations a few choice designs were generated.
The team found that the biggest advantage would come from complicated shapes. Cubes with inward dimpled faces, for example. But because those would be difficult to manufacture and expensive to produce, the algorithm also optimised and simplified the shapes.
In the end, the algorithm spat out a number of solar panel designs, and the team built three different arrangements of solar cells. They propped them up on the roof of an MIT laboratory building for several weeks, and waited.
They found power output ranging from double to more than 20 times that of fixed flat panels with the same base area. Even on cloudy days, the structures showed a huge improvement in power output over conventional flat panels. The reason is due to the multiple angles -- the concertina arrangement is able to capture sun even when it's close to the horizon.
As such, the modules would work best in areas far from the equator, and would still generate power in winter months or during mornings and evenings. Because they provide a steady flow of energy, they'd integrate with the power grid more comfortably. Plus, their small footprint lends them to cramped environments.
There's one more interesting advantage. With the tall tower, "you could ship flat, and then could unfold at the site," says the paper's senior author, Jeffrey Grossman, a professor of power engineering at MIT.

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