It sounds like something from a sci-fi movie， but the shadow-effect energy generator （SEG） is a real prototype device. The fascinating device could help people to transform the way renewable energy is generated indoors.

The SEG uses the contrast between darkness and light to produce electricity. Its made up of a series of thin strips of gold film on a silicon wafer， placed on top of a flexible plastic base.

Whereas shadows are usually a problem for renewable solar energy production， the scientists discovered a way to actually harness the shadows to keep on generating power. The technology—which is cheaper to produce than a typical solar cell， according to its developers—produces small amounts of power and could be used in mobile gadgets.

“Shadows are omnipresent， and we often take them for granted，” says materials scientist Tan Swee Ching， from the National University of Singapore （NUS）. “In conventional photovoltaic or optoelectronic applications where a steady source of light is used to power devices， the presence of shadows is undesirable， since it degrades the performance of devices.

“In this work， we capitalized on the illumination contrast caused by shadows as an indirect source of power. The contrast in illumination induces a voltage difference between the shadow and illuminated sections， resulting in an electric current. This novel concept of harvesting energy in the presence of shadows is unprecedented.”

這聽起來(lái)好像是科幻電影里的東西，但陰影效應(yīng)發(fā)電機(jī)是真實(shí)存在的實(shí)物裝置。這個(gè)吸引人的裝置能幫助人們改變可再生能源在室內(nèi)產(chǎn)生的方式。

陰影效應(yīng)發(fā)電機(jī)利用明暗對(duì)比來(lái)發(fā)電，它由硅晶片上的一系列薄金片組成，這些薄金片被安置在軟塑料底座上。

盡管陰影通常會(huì)給可再生太陽(yáng)能生產(chǎn)造成問(wèn)題，但事實(shí)上，科學(xué)家找到了利用影子來(lái)持續(xù)發(fā)電的方法。據(jù)其開發(fā)人員介紹，這種技術(shù)比一般的太陽(yáng)能電池生產(chǎn)成本更低，雖然產(chǎn)生的功率很小，但是可用于移動(dòng)設(shè)備。

新加坡國(guó)立大學(xué)材料科學(xué)家Tan Swee Ching說(shuō)：“陰影無(wú)處不在，我們經(jīng)常認(rèn)為它的存在是理所當(dāng)然的。在傳統(tǒng)的光電應(yīng)用中，穩(wěn)定光源被用來(lái)給設(shè)備供電，人們不喜歡影子的存在，因?yàn)樗档土嗽O(shè)備的性能。

“在這項(xiàng)工作中，我們利用影子產(chǎn)生的明暗對(duì)比，把它當(dāng)作間接能源。明暗對(duì)比使陰影部分和被照亮部分之間產(chǎn)生電壓差，這導(dǎo)致電流的產(chǎn)生。這種從陰影中獲取能量的新概念前所未有?！?/p>

Word Study

device /d?'va?s/ n. 裝置;設(shè)備

base /be?s/ n. 基底;底座

gadget /'ɡ?d??t/ n. 小器具;小裝置

conventional /k?n'ven??nl/ adj. 傳統(tǒng)的

capitalize on 利用

The team failed to capitalize on their early lead.