Self-cleaning solar panels: scientific breakthrough or real solution – comment from experts at Smart Solar

2026-01-143 min.

Change language: Albania Bulgaria N. Macedonia Serbia

At the beginning of 2026, the renewable energy sector is in а interesting position. Recently the focus was on the reduction in the price of photovoltaic cells themselves, now the focus shifts to a far more pragmatic question, how to maintain high efficiency during the entire exploitation period. The interesting thing is, one of the main obstacles is nature itself, dust, pollen, and general atmospheric contamination. In this regard, the progress of the developments of scientists from the Institute of Electronics at the Bulgarian Academy of Sciences (BAS) deserves attention, offering an interesting change in the maintenance of solar panels. To view this question from an expert lens, we turned to one of the leading specialists in the sector Smart Solar – a company with many years of experience in the design, construction and maintenance of photovoltaic power plants.

The basis of the development of the BAS team, presented at the end of 2025 in Bulgaria, is the use of a femtosecond laser for surface modification. Instead of adding a new layer onto the glass, the femtosecond laser changes its physical structure on a micro and nano level. “A considerable portion of the solar panels being installed today use chemical nanocoatings of titanium oxide or silicon dioxide. They are effective, but they have their limits. The new technology offered by BAS is unlikely to act as a panacea for everything, but most likely, it will offer much easier self-cleaning of surfaces. Currently, the solution to dealing with stubborn dirt comes down to more frequent and active (manual or robotic) cleaning of the panels," Smart Solar explained.

This is a challenge for the sector on a global level and BAS technology is a more modern and greener alternative, with the intention of removing the need of all these maintenance expenses. However, at this stage its introduction is relatively costly.