Scientific Reports· 2016Q1
Evaluation of a Silicon 90Sr Betavoltaic Power Source
- 43citations
- Q1SCImago
- 2016year
Short summary
Researchers designed and tested a silicon betavoltaic device using 90Sr, achieving a record 16% conversion efficiency and generating 1W of power.
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Key points
- Developed a silicon betavoltaic device powered by 90Sr.
- Achieved a measured conversion efficiency of 16%.
- The device is designed to generate 1W of power.
- High efficiency is linked to length scale matching and secondary electron generation.
AI-generated from the title and abstract; the full text is not read.
Abstract
Abstract Betavoltaic energy converters ( i.e ., β-batteries) are attractive power sources because of their potential for high energy densities (>200 MWh/kg) and long duration continuous discharge (>1 year). However, conversion efficiencies have been historically low (<3%). High efficiency devices can be achieved by matching β-radiation transport length scales with the device physics length scales. In this work, the efficiency of c-Si devices using high-energy (>1 MeV) electrons emitted from 90 Sr as a power source is investigated. We propose a design for a >10% efficient betavoltaic device, which generates 1 W of power. A Varian Clinac iX is used to simulate the high-energy electrons emitted from 90 Sr, and a high efficiency c-Si photovoltaic cell is used as the converter. The measured conversion efficiency is 16%. This relatively high value is attributed to proper length scale matching and the generation of secondary electrons in c-Si by the primary β-particles.
The authors' abstract, as published at the source. Scientific Reports, 2016 · DOI ↗
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Field: Nuclear Energy and Engineering
Nuclear Energy and EngineeringEnergy