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Welcome to UC Solar

University of California Advanced Solar Technologies Institute (UC Solar)

UC Solar faculty, students and postdoctoral researchers are dedicated to designing and developing innovative solar energy generation technologies that are more efficient, more affordable, and easier to integrate. UC Solar is made up of participants from University of California's Merced, Berkeley, Santa Barbara, Davis, San Dieg, Riverside, Irvine, Santa Cruz and Los Angeles campuses, and it is supported by research grants, philanthropic gifts, and corporate sponsors.

Featured News

Professor Winston with his research team and a solar collector.

Founding Faculty Roland Winston Remembered for Pioneering Solar Energy

February 18, 2025

Distinguished Professor Emeritus Roland Winston, a pioneer in solar energy, engineering and physics, died Feb. 8 at the age of 88 at his home in Merced. A founding faculty member in the schools of...

Students walking under solar breezeway

UC Merced Shines In Annual Sustainability Report

October 6, 2022

In the 2022 Sustainable Campus Index, UC Merced placed Top 10 in several categories including a tie for the No.1 spot in research. The annual report published by the Association for the Advancement...

Professor Roland Winston and some of his student researchers with a solar collector

In Retiring, Winston Looks Forward to His Busy, Bright Future

June 13, 2022

Distinguished Professor Roland Winston was among the first eight faculty members at UC Merced in 2003, two years before the campus opened. When he retires July 1, at age 86, he will be the first of...