Solid-State Cooling Technologies Promise Greener Air Conditioning, But Efficiency Questions Linger

As global AC unit numbers are projected to triple by 2050, solid-state cooling offers a potential solution to reduce air conditioning's significant environmental burden—accounting for 3% of global greenhouse-gas emissions and 7% of electricity use. However, leading scientists remain skeptical about whether these emerging technologies can match the coefficient of performance of traditional systems, raising doubts about real-world scalability despite their environmental appeal.