From the spare room to outer space: A DIY project that could transform solar power

A do-it-yourself device that started life as a hobby and took off during COVID-19 could help to unlock the next generation of solar energy, including advanced technology for space missions.

Dr Jamie Laird, a Research Fellow at the ARC Centre of Excellence in Exciton Science and the University of Melbourne, invented a new machine for testing the defects in perovskite solar cells, the first of its kind anywhere in the world.