Marketplace®

Daily business news and economic stories

A Jackie Chan movie just changed the solar industry

The material in blu-ray discs make solar panels more efficient.

It turns out Jackie Chan movies are the key to the solar energy business. Sort of.

Researchers at Northwestern University used the material in a blu-ray disc of Chan’s movie “Police Story 3: Supercop” to make solar panels that are 22 percent more efficient than regular ones.

You don’t actually need a Jackie Chan movie. Any blu-ray disc will apparently work.

But it’s still fun to pretend.

Related Topics

Collections:

Latest Episodes

View All Shows
  • Marketplace Morning Report
    4 hours ago
    7:08
  • Marketplace Tech
    6 hours ago
    11:03
  • Marketplace
    17 hours ago
    25:19
  • Make Me Smart
    a day ago
    19:00
  • This Is Uncomfortable
    3 days ago
    56:05
  • Million Bazillion
    24 days ago
    32:45