Question: Please tell me something about solar cells and solar power.

Answer: Solar cells generate electric currents directly from sunlight. They are made up of thin slices of what are known as semi-conductors. Often these are thin slices of crystalline silicon. The electrons are excited by the light and so move from one layer to another. This produces an electric current. Light is changed into electrical energy. Solar cells can be expensive to install. You might also be interested in the following examples of harnessing solar energy: Solar panels just contain water pipes under a black surface. This black surface absorbs the heat radiation from the sun and then heats the water in the pipes. Solar furnace which is made up of a lot of curved mirrors focussed on one spot to produce a very high temperature so water can be turned to steam to drive a turbine.

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