2010 R&D 100 Winner
Lithium-ion batteries and solar cells are by now familiar technologies. Sandia National Laboratories, Albuquerque, N.M., and partners have now combined these technologies into the Micro Power Source, a rechargeable ultra-small power source that integrates a lithium-ion-based solid electrolyte battery with an ultra-thin photovoltaic collector as an energy harvester. With a system volume of 1 μL, it has an energy density greater than 300 Wh/L, comparable to traditional lithium-ion systems. The battery can handle 3,500 charge/discharge cycles.
The device features Front Edge Technology’s (Baldwin Park, Calif.) thin-film rechargeable lithium cells and masking technique for manufacturing micro thin-film-batteries; Sandia’s ultra thin photovoltaic cells; Pacific Northwest National Laboratory’s (Richland, Wash.) ultra-thin sealing material; and the Univ. of California, Los Angeles Nanofabrication Lab’s assembly and packaging techniques.
The developers report that construction of the battery and the PV are based on existing manufacturing technologies that are amenable to volume manufacturing scale-up. Applications include smart cards, environmental sensors, tags for material tracking, continuous medical monitors, and a power source for micro-satellites.
Technology
Photovoltaic energy harvester
Developers
Sandia National Laboratories
Front Edge Technology, Inc.
Pacific Northwest National Laboratory
University of California at Los Angeles
Development Team
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| (l-r): Todd Bauer, Christine Ford, David Stein, Darlene Udoni, Randy Shul, Carlos Sanchez, Karl Greth, and Robert Jarecki, Sandia National Laboratories |
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| (l-r): Simon Nieh, Victor Krasnov, and Andy Shih, Front Edge Technology, Inc. |
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| (l-r): Wendy Bennett, Mark Gross, Gordon Graff, and Jason Zhang; (Inset): Charles Bonham, Pacific Northwest National Laboratory |
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| (l-r): Bob Xu and Jenn-Ming Yang, UCLA |
The Micro Power Source Development Team:
Todd Bauer, Sandia National Laboratories
Wendy D. Bennett, Pacific Northwest National Laboratory
Charles C. Bonham, Pacific Northwest National Laboratory
Christine Ford, Sandia National Laboratories
Gordon L. Graff, Pacific Northwest National Laboratory
Doug Greth, Sandia National Laboratories
Mark E. Gross, Pacific Northwest National Laboratory
Rob Jarecki, Sandia National Laboratories
Simon Nieh, Front Edge Technology Inc
Carlos Sanchez, Sandia National Laboratories
Randy Shul, Sandia National Laboratories
David Stein, Sandia National Laboratories
Darlene Udoni, Sandia National Laboratories
Yuhuan Xu, University of California at Los Angeles
Jenn-Ming Yang, University of California at Los Angeles
Jiguang (Jason) Zhang, Pacific Northwest National Laboratory
