The Samara university creates an analogue of the "perpetual" battery

Scientists of the  Samara National Research University named after academician S. P. Korolyov developed technology which allows to create the battery with a life more than 100 years.

This technology is based on the energy  transformation of a radioactive source to electrical energy.  Radioactive isotope emits the flow of the electrons, and it's  generate electrical  energy.

"Thanks to isotope of electron, which generates source  a beta radiation, we create a photo converters analog, but at the same time we don't need the sun", - the supervisor and the chief designer of the project, the associate professor of radiophysics, semiconductor micro and a nanoelectronics of the Samara university Victor Chepurnov emphasized.

Many scientists from all over the world are creating  of power supplies by  energy of radioisotopes. Experimental samples of nuclear batteries  in Russia, and in Switzerland, and in the USA. The benefit of developments is that  is that  this product created on the basis of their technology will differ in environmentally-friendly, low cost and the long period of operation.

First, benefits carbon-14 application in the new battery as a radioactive source. The half-life of this element is  5700 years and at the same time, in difference, for example, from Ni-63, carbon-14 is nontoxical and differs in low cost.

The second innovative feature of  the Samara university scientists  a new porous silicon carbide   as "substrate" under a radioactive element. Patented technology  by Samara university scientists that differs from conventional: carbide film is forming by "an endotaksiya method" on a silicon substrate.

"This technology allows to reduce the cost of "substrate" by 100 times. Expenses are significantly reduced because we don't use traditional process of  film formation on a silicon carbide  substrate, – the member of team Samara university developers Albina Gurskaya remark

Indisputable advantage of silicon carbide  structure is radiation tolerance. At the isotope radiation it's  remains almost invariable, as allows to say that the battery manufactured on technology  Samara university scientists will work beyond all bounds (by the standards of human life) long time.

First, field of  "perpetual" battery application are "technologies of the future". Thanks to the compact sizes these power supplies will be ideal for different sensors in automated control systems, including for uninterrupted  monitoring of oil and gas pipelines  during all their life cycle in remote regions of Siberia, the Far East and the Arctic.

Sensors with the "perpetual" battery can widely be used also during creation of a highly complex mechanical movement as silicon carbide will operate to 350°C.

"We  learned  to do  nano - and a mesopores  on a silicon substrate, then to transform their unstable properties to stable. It means we transfer a silicon phase to a silicon carbide phase. It semiconductor material too. It is particularly resistant to  chemical additives, able to function  at a temperature  to 350 degrees. Silicon sensors of temperatures function  most to 200. Carbide silicon function   at a temperature above 150 degrees. Radiation more passively, than silicon by 10 times, in case of  the Chernobyl issue robots out of control, irradiation level  on silicon carbide allowed 10 times above", - Victor Chepurnov commented.

The car developers focused attention to independent power supplies . The huge mass of sensors is expected function  in "smart car" in the passive or active mode. Developers of various unmanned aviation vehicles interested  in such power supplies as requirements of steady function with low weight and at the same  time with a high power density are extremely important for them.

Great prospects  for new batteries use open in medicine,especially  in cardiology.The problem for cardioparients is a  replacement of power supplies in the pacemaker sensors,setting a heart rhythm. Not all patients  able to  undergo a second surgery as often their life is limited to the term of pacemaker function.

Researches of Samara university scientists  on  development of new technology for batteries  creation using radioactive isotopes began fifteen years ago. The patent for invention of new semiconductor structures for obtaining electric energy at the expense of radioisotopes  was received. The establishment a new battery prototype  is planned for October-November, 2016.

Scientific reports on this topic were presented at a number of the international conferences, including at the Session of Office of Nuclear Physics of the Russian Academy of Sciences to OIYaI (Dubn. In further, close cooperation of the Samara university scientists  with Rosatom Nuclear Energy State Corporation, OIYaI (Dubna), MISIS, PIYaF (Gatchina), MSU, the “Elektrovypryamitel” enterprise (Saransk), AKOM Group, foreign partners.

Photo: Andrey Kiselev (“Illuminator “photography club)