The researchers, led by senior author Shane Ardo, an Assistant Professor of Chemistry, Chemical Engineering, and Materials Science at the University of California, Irvine, write that they have crafted an "ionic analog to the electronic pn-junction solar cell," harnessing light to exploit the semiconductor-like behavior of water and generate ionic electricity. They hope to use such a mechanism to manufacture a device that would directly desalinate saltwater upon exposure to sunlight.

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William White of the Ardo Group is the lead author on a recent publication in Joule that demonstrates a membrane-based ionic analog of a traditional pn-junction solar cell

Read his publication here.

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