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There are many types of solar panels today, and flexible solar panels are rapidly becoming popular because they are more versatile and portable and you don’t have to worry about breakage or wearing down like with other types of solar panels. Flexible solar panels extremely portable, and perfect companions for charging laptops, mobiles, even RVs.

If you are looking for low cost flexible solar panels, then there are a few such models like PowerFilm 20 Watt Rollable Solar Panel, which is actually considered as the leading lightweight flexible solar panel. Brunton SolarRoll, Sunlinq, and Sunforce are also popular for flexible/portable solar panels. Most models range from $50 to $300 depending on their power output.

These integrated solar panels are produced using a unique roll-to-roll process, resulting in the creation of a supply and truly rollable panel that is unlike any of its competitors today. These panels are particularly great because they perform so well in such an array of different and diverse conditions and they come ready to connect to batteries and an array of handy accessories.

The ICP PowerFlex flexible solar panels are also good — powerful enough to charge RV batteries and field electronics, and still very lightweight and easy to transport. Incredibly durable and versatile, the solar cells used in these panels incorporate NASA and military standard technologies for rugged construction and innovative design.

You can choose from 5, 10 and 20 watt flexible solar panels, all of which roll easily into their convenient storage tubes. All models come with reinforced corner brackets which make them even more durable and versatile.

Remember when choosing a flexible solar panel to look for one that is going to suit your own specific needs as best as possible. Consider what you are going to be powering with this solar panel and then determine what size and specifications you should be looking for. Also remember that although these panels typically come for a reasonable price you do not want to go with the cheapest because its worth having a quality solar panel that has better specifications with some form of guarantee.

Here’s an interesting report on solar cells by Reuters from Chicago.

Here’s a finding reported on Sunday in the journal Nature Materials, which offers a new way to process conventional silicon by slicing the brittle wafers into ultrathin bits and carefully transferring them onto a flexible surface.

US researchers have found a way to make efficient silicon-based solar cells that are flexible enough to be rolled around a pencil and transparent enough to be used to tint windows on buildings or cars.

“We can make it thin enough that we can put it on plastic to make a rollable system. You can make it gray in the form of a film that could be added to architectural glass,” said John Rogers of the University of Illinois.

It opens up spaces on the fronts of buildings as opportunities for solar energy,” Rogers said. Solar cells, which convert solar energy into electricity, are in high demand because of higher oil prices and concerns over climate change.

The new technology could be used on car windows, generating enough electricity to power the GPS or air conditioning.

Many companies, including Japanese consumer electronics maker Sharp Corp and Germany’s Q-Cells are making thin-film solar cells, but they typically are less efficient at converting solar energy into electricity than conventional cells.

Rogers said his technology uses conventional single crystal silicon. “It’s robust. It’s highly efficient. But in its current form, it’s rigid and fragile,” he said.

Rogers’ team uses a special etching method that slices chips off the surface of a bulk silicon wafer. The sliced chips are 10 to 100 times thinner than the wafer, and the size can be adapted to the application.

Once sliced, a device picks up the bits of silicon chips “like a rubber stamp” and transfers them to a new surface material, Rogers said. “These silicon solar cells become like a solid ink pad for that rubber stamp. The surface of the wafers after we’ve done this slicing become almost like an inking pad,” he said. “We just print them down onto a target surface.”

The final step is to electrically connect these cells to get power out of them, he said. Adding flexibility to the material would make the cells far easier to transport. Rogers envisions the material being “rolled up like a carpet and thrown on the truck.”

“The work could create new ways to use silicon in photovoltaics – as ‘tinting’ films in architectural or automotive glass (like sunroofs); as large area ‘rollable’ sheets; or as lightweight ’solar skins’ for integration onto structural surfaces on buildings or even aircraft,” says Rogers.