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Home > Press > Removing the lead hazard from perovskite solar cells
A transparent phosphate crystal, which incorporated into solar cells, can instantaneously immobilize the lead in case of failure and block its leaching out from the device.
CREDIT
Endre Horváth (EPFL)
Abstract: The solar energy-to-electricity conversion of perovskite solar cells is unbelievably high, around 25%, which is now approaching the performance of the best silicon solar cells, says Professor László Forró at EPFL s School of Basic Sciences. But their central element is lead, which is a poison; if the solar panel fails, it can wash out into the soil, get into the food chain, and cause serious diseases.
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Snap-Freezing Reveals a Truer Structure of Brain Connections
Snap-Freezing Reveals a Truer Structure of Brain Connections
Source: EPFL
Most synaptic connections in the adult brain are situated on dendritic spines; small, micrometer-long, protrusions extending from the neurons’ surface. The spines’ exact size and shape determine how well signals are passed from one neuron to another.
These details become very important when neuroscientists want to model brain circuits or understand how information is transmitted between neurons across the brain’s neuronal circuits. However, their small size and the difficulties in preserving brain tissue in its natural state have always left the question open as to what the true structure of the dendritic spine is.
Athens, Greece – Concerns have been growing in recent months about the restrictions and bans placed on protests in Greece, as well as the treatment of protesters, journalists, and lawyers at the hands of the police.
In July, as the coronavirus pandemic remained a threat, the Greek parliament passed a bill restricting protests – including outright bans – if they are deemed a threat to public safety.
The new law, which also holds protest organisers legally accountable for damage inflicted by protesters, was condemned by groups such as Amnesty International as well as the Athens bar association and the parliament’s own legislative review committee.