Photovoltaic roof tiles and shingles is a new development within building-integrated photovoltaic (BIPV) to generate power. These photovoltaic tiles and shingles replace conventional asphalt roofs and shingles in new buildings and are used for primary or secondary source of electric power.  The main reason for the development of photovoltaic roofs and shingles are to add beauty to the construction, as against the panels that stand out and are not aesthetically pleasing to eyes.  The biggest advantage of using integrated photovoltaic is the initial cost, which can be offset by reducing the amount spent on building materials and labor that would normally be used to construct the roof itself. Photovoltaic tiles and shingles are now been considered the fastest growing segments of the photovoltaic industry. One of the biggest challenge for solar roof is the concern of overheating. Unlike solar panels which cools down by the the flow of air through the small air space, photovoltaic roof does not offer such advantage.

Photovoltaic roof uses thin-film technology and are manufactured by laminating thin layer of photovoltaic chemicals onto a thin sheet of metal in three layers; each layer reacts to a different range of light. The benefit of this system is the better reaction to low or indirect light. The efficiency of these pv roof is around 10% to 12%, but few manufacturer claims that they out-perform other forms of PV solar in indirect light, which means they can produce more electricity in certain real-world conditions such as cloudy days. Since they use different kinds and combination of chemicals, each type of solar shingle reacts differently and deals with the heat rather well. These thin-film photovoltaic roof and shingles are less efficient than crystalline solar panels in converting sunlight to electricity, thus requiring more space to produce same amount of power as solar panels. The added advantage is the less cost.

There are numerous companies, such as Applied Materials (USA), Oerlikon (Switzerland), Mirle Automation (Taiwan), ULVAC (Japan), and Centrotherm (Germany), who are investing heavily in building-integrated photovoltaic , thus giving a big boast to thin-film solar panel production for photovoltaic roof and shingles. Another developer of sustainable solar roofing systems, RS energy is launching the first building-integrated photovoltaic (BIPV) roofing product to curved roofing systems. These tiles and shingles can provide some or all the energy needs of a house without installing solar panels, which may detract from the visual appeal or maybe not allowed due to home owners associations regulations. The tiles integrate seamlessly with clay tile roofs, making it easy to upgrade the curved tile roof to a power-generating platform.

According to the experimental data, a 30 tile section, which has a 3 inch overlap and 14 inch exposure area, can generate 860 kilowatts her hour during a 6 hour solar exposure. One unique feature being - if one tile goes down and become non-functional, the whole system still keeps working. The tiles are currently undergoing testing in Philadelphia, but are available through both the SRS and US tile websites.

Among the newer developments in photovoltaic tiles is the availability of solar tiles in wide range of colours, which enables easier building-integration of BIPV with an existing roof or colour matching of BIPV with a new-building. Recent development are going on in the changing color of roof tiles. Developed by MIT graduates, color changing roof tiles adjust to the temperature of the season. The tiles turn white when it’s hot outside (or when the tile is 80 percent covered by sunlight), and black when it’s cold (or when 30 percent or less is covered by sunlight).

Massive photovoltaic installations on rooftops are widely used on warehouses and elaborate stadiums in foreign lands. Companies like Dow Chemical is working towards developing the POWERHOUSE line of solar shingles, which they claim will be widely available in 2011. Dow claims that "affordability" will be the top most priority. Lets wait and watch.