A local research team has developed a solid organic solar battery, which is cheaper and more efficient than existing solar batteries.

A team of researchers at the Korea Institute of Science and Technology, led by Doctor Kang Yong-soo said Friday it had developed a solid organic solar battery which transforms light energy into electrical energy three times more efficiently than existing solar batteries. The new solar battery also costs five times less than the widely used silicon solar battery.

The team explained that the transparent solar battery can also make electricity while being used as a window and that it can be used in a variety of areas as it is bendable yet unbreakable.

The global solar battery market has been recording a rapid growth of 20 to 30 percent annually from 2002, when it posted three-point-five billion dollars. The market is expected to growth to 15 billion dollars by 2010.