Radioisotope battery can provide power density that is six orders of magnitude higher than chemical batteries
– By Linton Levy –
University of Missouri researchers are developing a nuclear energy battery that is smaller, lighter and more efficient. This nuclear battery, while not available yet, is as small as a penny. Kwon’s research has been published in the Journal of Applied Physics Letters and Journal of Radioanalytical and Nuclear Chemistry.
“To provide enough power, we need certain methods with high energy density,” says Jae Kwon, assistant professor of electrical and computer engineering at MU. “The radioisotope battery can provide power density that is six orders of magnitude higher than chemical batteries.”
Kwon has been working with J. David Robertson, chemistry professor and associate director of the MU Research Reactor, and is working to build and test the battery at the facility. In the future, they hope to increase the battery’s power, shrink its size and try with various other materials. Kwon says that the battery could be thinner than the thickness of human hair. They have also applied for a provisional patent.
Kwon and his research team have been working on creating a small nuclear battery, currently the size and thickness of a dime, intended to power various micro/nanoelectromechanical systems (M/NEMS). Although nuclear batteries may pose concerns, Kwon contends that they are safe.
“People hear the word ‘nuclear’ and think of something very dangerous,” he says. “However, nuclear power sources have already been safely powering a variety of devices, such as pace-makers, space satellites and underwater systems.”
Kwon's innovation is not only in the battery’s size, but also in its semiconductor. Kwon’s battery uses a liquid semiconductor rather than a solid semiconductor.
“The critical part of using a radioactive battery is that when you harvest the energy, part of the radiation energy can damage the lattice structure of the solid semiconductor,” Kwon says. “By using a liquid semiconductor, we believe we can minimize that problem.”