Betavoltaic battery performance now measurable through standardized comparison tools

What if you never had to worry about recharging your devices again? Imagine a world where a heart pacemaker works for your whole life on its own. Advances in the area of betavoltaic batteries could make this possible.

In collaboration with Canadian Nuclear Laboratories (CNL), uOttawa researchers have proposed three new, clear indicators to measure and compare the batteries’ performance. The goal is to facilitate and accelerate the development of super-long-lasting betavoltaic batteries.

The study, titled “Figures of Merit to Quantify Betavoltaic Device Performance,” is published in Cell Reports Physical Science.

Betavoltaic batteries can generate electricity for more than 10 years without recharging and function in extreme conditions, whether in space, on the sea floor or in the Arctic.

The three “figures of merit” were presented:

• capture efficiency (the capacity of material to absorb beta energy), gain (the multiplier effect in current generation)
• enable article generates more than one charge contributing to the electrical current) and gain efficiency (the ability of the device to collect the charge generated)
• enable understanding of the internal physical mechanisms, identify limitations and offer a universal framework for a fair comparison of all betavoltaic technologies

“With capture efficiency, gain and gain efficiency, we can finally compare betavoltaic cells simply and accurately. These tools will enable big improvements, thus making the energy transition more efficient and sustainable,” says Mathieu de Lafontaine, an assistant professor in the Faculty of Engineering and study lead author.

This new means of standardization will benefit scientists and industry, and society as a whole, enabling a faster transition to sustainable energy sources, especially in extreme conditions.

“Thanks to this advance, researchers will be able to characterize and optimize betavoltaic cells more easily. It will also help manufacturers speed up development of long-life batteries,” says de Lafontaine.