PRE-EQUILIBRIUM SYSTEM AND METHOD USING SOLID-STATE DEVICES AS ENERGY CONVERTERS USING NANO-ENGINEERED POROUS NETWORK MATERIALS

摘要

An energy conversion device that converts various forms of energy into electricity. The energy forms can be chemical, photovoltaic or thermal gradients. The energy conversion device has first and second electrodes. There is a substrate having a porous semiconductor or dielectric layer disposed thereon. The substrate itself may be planar, two-dimensional, or three-dimensional, and has inner and outer surfaces. These substrates may be rigid, flexible and/or flexible. The porous semiconductor or dielectric layer may be a nano-engineered structure. The porous conductor material is positioned on at least a portion of the porous semiconductor or dielectric layer such that at least a portion of the porous conductor material enters the nano-engineered structure of the porous semiconductor or dielectric layer, thereby forming an entangled region.