Lasts 50 years and… runs on nuclear power: Chinese invent mobile phone battery that never needs recharging

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Similar batteries have been around for a long time but not in this mini size. Nuclear-powered isotope batteries are used in submarine navigation lights, pacemakers and deep-sea cables.

Now, Chinese scientists have managed to make the technology, in accordance with Moore’s Law, small enough that the atomic isotope battery can fit on a coin. And it takes 50 years or more.

The Chinese hope to spark a smaller revolution in consumer electronics. Smartphone batteries will never need to be charged again. Drones can fly without needing to land.

Like a mini nuclear power plant in your pocket

But here’s the bad part: the batteries run on nuclear energy. They produce energy from the radioactive decay of elements. Unlike nuclear fission or fusion, nuclear decay is a spontaneous process in which isotopes emit radiation and new, more stable atoms emerge. Scientists encapsulate these isotopes and convert the released energy into usable electrical energy using semiconductors.

The battery’s inventors believe they have solved problems such as nuclear safety, control and radiation protection. On the battery cover it says in capital letters: “Do not disassemble” – you must not disassemble the battery. However, the mini battery must be installed securely.

The BV100 will not be damaged, catch fire or explode, according to the website of Beijing-based start-up Betavolt, which plans to begin mass production of such 3-volt batteries this year. A 1-volt model is expected to arrive in 2025.

50 years of electricity

Betavolt researchers and engineers also want to solve the damage caused by beta and gamma radiation in batteries to semiconductors.

Apparently, Betavolt has developed a unique single-crystal diamond semiconductor, and the company is the only company in the world that can mass produce such boron-doped diamond semiconductors.

At just 15 millimeters wide and 5 millimeters thin, the nuclear-powered prototype BV100 is smaller than a coin and can provide electricity for 50 years without needing to recharge the mini-battery, Betavolt’s website says. “Devices such as smartphones can operate indefinitely without recharging,” he says. “Drones can fly without having to land.”

Nuclear batteries should be recycled

Apart from its tremendous service life, the battery is said to work well even in extreme plus and minus temperatures.

But it’s not just security concerns. The long lifespan of these nuclear batteries also raises concerns about recycling.

Hong Kong newspaper “South China Morning Post” quotes a Betavolt researcher: “We plan to collect and recycle every battery once we start selling the product.”

Source :Blick