Sources of unconventional electricity of increased power based on radiation decay (nuclear battery)
The researchers of our organization have been conducting successful scientific experiments with unconventional electricity sources based on radiation decay for a long time.
A nuclear battery is a radioisotope source of electric power in which the energy of radioactive decay of radionuclide fuel (hydrogen isotope tritium) is converted into electric power.
A nuclear battery consists of a radiation source and a collector separated from it by a dielectric film. When decaying, the source emits beta radiation, which makes it positively charged and the collector negatively charged, and a potential difference arises between them. Nuclear batteries are characterized by higher volumetric energy density, longer service life and greater endurance in harsh environments.
The service life of a nuclear battery, based on the half-life of the elements, can range from 20 to 100 years.
Much attention is currently being paid to the problem of creating small-sized power sources. The existing and increasingly expanding market of small-sized electronic equipment, including special equipment, requires a significant number of small and micro-sized power supplies. Existing galvanic batteries and accumulators, including lithium-ion batteries, have a limited service life, require constant recharging, and have operating temperature restrictions.
Thus, the creation of reliable power sources with a capacity of 0.05-0.5 W that would not require recharging is a rather urgent task.
If the expected results are obtained, i.e., if laboratory samples of a 0.05-0.5 W nuclear battery are created and durability (service life) tests are conducted, this technology will be certified. In case of mass production, since the cost of the resulting battery is 3-5 times cheaper than the existing ones compared to the specific capacity (power), the nuclear battery will have significant competitive advantages.
The developers of this technology have proved that the use of semiconductor elements with a Schottky barrier structure or p-i-p structure in the structure of a nuclear battery will increase its power several times due to more complete absorption of beta particles and increase of the electric electrochemical potential in a beta-anode tritium nuclear battery.