AlGaAs 55Fe X-ray radioisotope microbattery

Abstract

This paper describes the performance of a fabricated prototype Al0.2Ga0.8As 55Fe radioisotope microbattery photovoltaic cells over the temperature range −20 °C to 50 °C. Two 400 μm diameter p+-i-n+ (3 μm i-layer) Al0.2Ga0.8As mesa photodiodes were used as conversion devices in a novel X-ray microbattery prototype. The changes of the key microbattery parameters were analysed in response to temperature: the open circuit voltage, the maximum output power and the internal conversion efficiency decreased when the temperature was increased. At −20 °C, an open circuit voltage and a maximum output power of 0.2 V and 0.04 pW, respectively, were measured per photodiode. The best internal conversion efficiency achieved for the fabricated prototype was only 0.95% at −20 °C.

Wide bandgap semiconductor conversion devices for radioisotope microbatteries

“…The voltaic effect induced in semiconductors by the absorption of photons, α particles, and βparticles, which is the basic principle of operation of radioisotope microbatteries, has been investigated since the 1950s [8][9] [10]. Recent studies on wide bandgap semiconductor conversion devices for radioisotope microbatteries have been conducted, including GaAs [11] [12], Al0.2Ga0.8As [13], Al0.52In0.48P [14] [15], In0.5Ga0.5P [16], SiC [17] [18], GaN [19] and diamond [20]. However, a direct comparison of the performance of previously reported radioisotope microbatteries in order to inform future radioisotope microbattery design cannot be made; the geometry of the semiconductor conversion devices and the incident radiation power differed.…”

Synergistic enhancement of CdSe / ZnS quantum dot and liquid scintillator for radioluminescent nuclear batteries

“…The scintillator material can convert high‐energy radiation particles into low‐energy visible light, and then combined with energy conversion technology can achieve electrical energy supply and reduce the radiation damage effect of PV devices 9,10 . Different types of radiation particles can be considered as the excitation sources of nuclear batteries, among which X‐ray has strong penetrating ability and weak radiation damage effect on devices 11‐14 . X‐ray‐based long‐life self‐powered technology has broad application prospects in many fields such as radiation safety testing, communication sensing, and high‐energy physics research, especially for the special needs of deep space exploration 15,16 …”

Use the Indirect Energy Conversion of the Phosphor Layer to Improve the Performance of Nuclear Batteries

“…Compared to alpha and beta sources, the use of X‐ray source can reduce device damage risks in the semiconductor, resulting in a substantially increased nuclear battery lifetime ,. In addition, X‐ray can be shielded easier than γ‐ray because of the low‐energy photons emitted from the source ,. Recently, the electron capture X‐ray emitter 55 Fe has received research attention for nuclear microbattery use .…”