Perhaps they were inspired by the snow of Switzerland’s famed mountains.

A team of researchers in Switzerland is claiming a world first after creating white solar panels.

They say the panels can blend into a building’s skin and become virtually invisible. Most PV modules, built to absorb as much sunlight as possible, appear blue-black.

Their new panels combine a solar cell technology which converts infrared solar light into electricity with a film which acts as a “selective scattering filter”.

Effectively this scatters the whole visible spectrum of light while transmitting infrared light.

The scientists at CSEM claim any solar technology based on crystalline silicon can now be used to make white – and coloured – modules.