David Savastano, Editor04.15.24
Creating solar power is of increasing importance in today’s world and in the future, but how does one capture the power inside as well as outside? There are a number of approaches, but Ambient Photonics has developed its own unique concept, with an eye on photosynthesis.
A spin-off of the Warner Babcock Institute for Green Chemistry, Ambient Photonics was founded in 2019 in California with the goal of bringing low light energy harvesting technology to mass scale. With a focus on IoT applications, the company aims to inspire a new generation of connected devices with endless power.
“Inspired by photosynthesis, Ambient Photonics technology is rooted in the simplicity of nature but doesn’t rely on the power of the sun alone,” said Bates Marshall, Ambient's co-founder and CEO. “Instead, our engineers looked at how photosynthesis works and turned the science behind it into a bright new idea: using the low-level ambient light that surrounds us everywhere to generate power. Revolutionary, patented molecular technology and manufacturing processes ensure a power-centric cell that is so sensitive to light that it can harvest energy from a candle.”
Marshall noted that Ambient has developed a first-of-its-kind low light energy harvesting solar technology that generates more than three times the power of conventional indoor solar technologies from a broader spectrum of indoor and outdoor ambient light.
“This chemistry breakthrough enables revolutionary advances in devices design, function, performance, sustainability, reliability, and consumer experience,” added Marshall. “Unlike high performance solar technologies of the past, Ambient’s innovations are cost compatible with today’s mass scale technologies. Ambient employs a novel industrial solar printing technology to coat its proprietary chemistry on thin, durable glass substrates – producing solar cells of virtually any size and shape. This flexibility empowers industrial designers, allowing them to embed Ambient’s cells into a variety of product shapes and structures.
As a result, Marshall said that Ambient’s low light solar cells do more to help manufacturers achieve electronic device sustainability goals than other technologies on the market.
“By harvesting energy from everyday light and extending product lifespan or eliminating batteries entirely, device manufacturers using our solar cells can dramatically reduce the carbon footprint of their devices,” he noted.
Removing the need for batteries also has significant environmental impact. According to the most recent data available from the US Environmental Protection Agency, in the United States alone, approximately three billion batteries are sold each year, averaging 32 per family or 10 per person.
“A typical consumer owns two button batteries and 10 A, AA, AAA, C, D, or 9V dry cell batteries, and throws out eight household batteries per year,” Marshall observed. “Besides generating mountains of hazardous waste in landfills, the production and disposal of batteries also has a large carbon footprint.”
Marshall said that the first thing that differentiates Ambient from competitors is its use of glass, which has its own benefits.
“Compared to competitors – almost all of which use plastic solar cells, rather than glass – we offer a large power density and cost advantage,” said Marshall. “These seem to be the attributes that our customers care about most.
“Product flexibility wasn’t a focus for us, given that we’ve been laser focused on developing our technology for indoor applications only. If you are making headphones or dog collars or solar powered handbags, the flexible plastic products are a better fit. But, for our high-power, low-cost model, we see many billions of units of potential demand,” he added.
Marshall added that Ambient’s cells are made to order for high volume electronic device manufacturers using a breakthrough industrial printing process through which proprietary energy harvesting molecules are applied to thin and durable glass substrates to create cells of virtually any size and shape.
Unlike expensive semiconductor vacuum manufacturing methodologies, Ambient’s rapid production process is efficient, scalable and cost compatible with mass market electronics manufacturing.
“The magic of Ambient solar cells also lies in their ability to be calibrated for specific applications,” he continued. “Ambient uses metal-free, synthetic organic dyes with tunable electronics and optical properties, enabling Ambient cells to be optimized for the full range of indoor light sources including compact fluorescent (CFL), halogen, light-emitting diode (LED), and natural light, to name a few – producing cells that maximize performance within a device’s real-world operating conditions. For example, an Ambient cell used in environments with CFL would deliver comparable performance when used in environments with LED light sources. No other solar technology has this advantage.”
Ambient Photonics had to overcome challenges to create its light energy harvesting technology. Marshall pointed out that legacy solar technologies like amorphous silicon cells – long used on solar calculators and children’s toys – don’t yield sufficient power in the real-world operational conditions for most indoor consumer electronics and IoT sensors, making it an unfit solution for mass-market electronics.
“Ambient has solved the low power density problem of legacy low light solar technologies by creating the world’s most powerful low light energy harvesting solar cells – making endless power for IoT electronics a reality for the first time,” Marshall added. “Critically important for indoor scenes lit by artificial light, Ambient cells are the only energy harvesting technology able to harness photons across the light spectrum, yielding more than 90% photon conversion efficiency in low light conditions.”
Marshall noted that Ambient’s technology makes it ideal for numerous markets.
“Thanks to our revolutionary technology, there is a massive opportunity for smart IoT devices and consumer electronics in a range of industries to be self-powered by low-level ambient light, making batteries obsolete for the first time,” Marshall said.
“Primarily, Ambient targets manufacturers of indoor consumer electronics and their accessories – solutions including keyboards, computer mice, remote controls, and smart home technologies. Given our low-cost, high-power density model, and ability to manufacture at-scale, we’re poised to meet the growing demand for solar solutions in this market.”
In addition to smart home and consumer electronics devices, Ambient also works closely with partners like E Ink in the retail industry, creating the next generation of electronic shelf labels (ESLs) for the world’s largest and most advanced retailers.
“With modern ESLs, retailers save on operational costs and deliver customers an optimal shopping experience – it’s a win-win for our customers and their consumers, and the retail industry is ripe for potential growth,” Marshall observed.
Ambient Photonics has numerous projects already on the market and in development.
“We have partnered with leading electronics manufacturers to deliver solar powered products to consumers,’” said Marshall. “Universal Electronics’ new ETERNA remote control platform features Ambient Photonics solar cells; Chicony has partnered with Ambient to produce a new sustainable, wireless keyboard; Primax will incorporate Ambient solar cells into a line of computer mice; and E Ink is working with us to integrate solar cells into next-generation electronic shelf labels. Early this year we also announced a partnership with Google – we’ll be working with them on a consumer technology product to be launched later in 2024.”
A spin-off of the Warner Babcock Institute for Green Chemistry, Ambient Photonics was founded in 2019 in California with the goal of bringing low light energy harvesting technology to mass scale. With a focus on IoT applications, the company aims to inspire a new generation of connected devices with endless power.
“Inspired by photosynthesis, Ambient Photonics technology is rooted in the simplicity of nature but doesn’t rely on the power of the sun alone,” said Bates Marshall, Ambient's co-founder and CEO. “Instead, our engineers looked at how photosynthesis works and turned the science behind it into a bright new idea: using the low-level ambient light that surrounds us everywhere to generate power. Revolutionary, patented molecular technology and manufacturing processes ensure a power-centric cell that is so sensitive to light that it can harvest energy from a candle.”
Marshall noted that Ambient has developed a first-of-its-kind low light energy harvesting solar technology that generates more than three times the power of conventional indoor solar technologies from a broader spectrum of indoor and outdoor ambient light.
“This chemistry breakthrough enables revolutionary advances in devices design, function, performance, sustainability, reliability, and consumer experience,” added Marshall. “Unlike high performance solar technologies of the past, Ambient’s innovations are cost compatible with today’s mass scale technologies. Ambient employs a novel industrial solar printing technology to coat its proprietary chemistry on thin, durable glass substrates – producing solar cells of virtually any size and shape. This flexibility empowers industrial designers, allowing them to embed Ambient’s cells into a variety of product shapes and structures.
As a result, Marshall said that Ambient’s low light solar cells do more to help manufacturers achieve electronic device sustainability goals than other technologies on the market.
“By harvesting energy from everyday light and extending product lifespan or eliminating batteries entirely, device manufacturers using our solar cells can dramatically reduce the carbon footprint of their devices,” he noted.
Removing the need for batteries also has significant environmental impact. According to the most recent data available from the US Environmental Protection Agency, in the United States alone, approximately three billion batteries are sold each year, averaging 32 per family or 10 per person.
“A typical consumer owns two button batteries and 10 A, AA, AAA, C, D, or 9V dry cell batteries, and throws out eight household batteries per year,” Marshall observed. “Besides generating mountains of hazardous waste in landfills, the production and disposal of batteries also has a large carbon footprint.”
Marshall said that the first thing that differentiates Ambient from competitors is its use of glass, which has its own benefits.
“Compared to competitors – almost all of which use plastic solar cells, rather than glass – we offer a large power density and cost advantage,” said Marshall. “These seem to be the attributes that our customers care about most.
“Product flexibility wasn’t a focus for us, given that we’ve been laser focused on developing our technology for indoor applications only. If you are making headphones or dog collars or solar powered handbags, the flexible plastic products are a better fit. But, for our high-power, low-cost model, we see many billions of units of potential demand,” he added.
Marshall added that Ambient’s cells are made to order for high volume electronic device manufacturers using a breakthrough industrial printing process through which proprietary energy harvesting molecules are applied to thin and durable glass substrates to create cells of virtually any size and shape.
Unlike expensive semiconductor vacuum manufacturing methodologies, Ambient’s rapid production process is efficient, scalable and cost compatible with mass market electronics manufacturing.
“The magic of Ambient solar cells also lies in their ability to be calibrated for specific applications,” he continued. “Ambient uses metal-free, synthetic organic dyes with tunable electronics and optical properties, enabling Ambient cells to be optimized for the full range of indoor light sources including compact fluorescent (CFL), halogen, light-emitting diode (LED), and natural light, to name a few – producing cells that maximize performance within a device’s real-world operating conditions. For example, an Ambient cell used in environments with CFL would deliver comparable performance when used in environments with LED light sources. No other solar technology has this advantage.”
Ambient Photonics had to overcome challenges to create its light energy harvesting technology. Marshall pointed out that legacy solar technologies like amorphous silicon cells – long used on solar calculators and children’s toys – don’t yield sufficient power in the real-world operational conditions for most indoor consumer electronics and IoT sensors, making it an unfit solution for mass-market electronics.
“Ambient has solved the low power density problem of legacy low light solar technologies by creating the world’s most powerful low light energy harvesting solar cells – making endless power for IoT electronics a reality for the first time,” Marshall added. “Critically important for indoor scenes lit by artificial light, Ambient cells are the only energy harvesting technology able to harness photons across the light spectrum, yielding more than 90% photon conversion efficiency in low light conditions.”
Marshall noted that Ambient’s technology makes it ideal for numerous markets.
“Thanks to our revolutionary technology, there is a massive opportunity for smart IoT devices and consumer electronics in a range of industries to be self-powered by low-level ambient light, making batteries obsolete for the first time,” Marshall said.
“Primarily, Ambient targets manufacturers of indoor consumer electronics and their accessories – solutions including keyboards, computer mice, remote controls, and smart home technologies. Given our low-cost, high-power density model, and ability to manufacture at-scale, we’re poised to meet the growing demand for solar solutions in this market.”
In addition to smart home and consumer electronics devices, Ambient also works closely with partners like E Ink in the retail industry, creating the next generation of electronic shelf labels (ESLs) for the world’s largest and most advanced retailers.
“With modern ESLs, retailers save on operational costs and deliver customers an optimal shopping experience – it’s a win-win for our customers and their consumers, and the retail industry is ripe for potential growth,” Marshall observed.
Ambient Photonics has numerous projects already on the market and in development.
“We have partnered with leading electronics manufacturers to deliver solar powered products to consumers,’” said Marshall. “Universal Electronics’ new ETERNA remote control platform features Ambient Photonics solar cells; Chicony has partnered with Ambient to produce a new sustainable, wireless keyboard; Primax will incorporate Ambient solar cells into a line of computer mice; and E Ink is working with us to integrate solar cells into next-generation electronic shelf labels. Early this year we also announced a partnership with Google – we’ll be working with them on a consumer technology product to be launched later in 2024.”