system
Given the following post, respond as if you're commenting on Reddit:
human
ELI5: Why are solar panels made of blue coloured materials, not black, even though Black materials tend to absorb more heat?
gpt
Basically because of the materials.  There are both blue and black solar panels, but blue ones are cheaper to make and easier (with lower carbon footprint) because they are what’s called “polycrystalline silicon” where the silicon is heated and poured, but the molecules aren’t perfectly aligned and refract light a certain way (making it blue)

The black is “mono-crystalline” where the molecules are aligned a specific way, but this is hugely energy intensive to produce, and more expensive.