Radioisotope microbattery based on liquid semiconductor

摘要

A liquid semiconductor-based radioisotope micropower source has been pioneerly developed. The semiconductor property of selenium was utilized along with a 166 MBq radioactive source of ~(35)S as elemental sulfur. Using a liquid semiconductor-based Schottky diode, electrical power was distinctively generated from the radioactive source. Energetic beta radiations in the liquid semiconductor can produce numerous electron hole pairs and create a potential drop. The measured power from the microbattery is 16.2 nW with an open-circuit voltage of 899 mV and a short-circuit of 107.4 nA.