Could Solar Power work more effectively if the solar rays were magnified?

If we focused the sun's energy like a magnifying glass does into the solar panels, would this generate more power at all?

Public Comments

1. Not really. It would reduce the size of the needed solar panel to generate a given amount of energy, but you cannot increase the total power we receive from the sun.
2. No, it would not. If the magnifying glass is the same area as the solar collectors, then it would be the same amount of energy the solar collectors would be gathering without the magnifying glass. In a way it would be cheaper, using cheap mirrors to focus the sun's rays onto a smaller solar collector surface area. And solar collectors are far more expensive. But as to more power? No.
3. This site I found talks about how to make your own solar power for your house and eliminate your power bill http://www.squidoo.com/howtomakesolarpower
4. i think sooo ..... but i dont know........ :D
5. If you concentrate the solar energy on the solar panels too much, the panels will just melt down.