Introduction to Nuclear Batteries and Radioisotopes

Prelas, M. A.; Boraas, Matthew; Aguilar, Fernando De La Torre; Seelig, John-David; Tchouaso, Modeste Tchakoua; Wisniewski, Denis

doi:10.1007/978-3-319-41724-0_1

Cited by 7 publications

(3 citation statements)

References 16 publications

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“…For direct energy conversion, the ionizing energy in converted into electricity through the liberation and collection of electrons or charged ions. For indirect conversion, the energy of the ionizing radiation resultant from radioactive decay is first converted into a second form, such as light in the case of scintillator-based conversion schemes, or heat in the case of thermal conversion such as that found in radioisotope thermoelectric generators (RTGs) 1 .…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…In contrast, scintillation-based radioisotope batteries rely on the conversion of the kinetic energy of ionizing radiation into photons, which are then converted into electricity, commonly by photovoltaic cells. This decouples the relatively sensitive photovoltaic cells from the ionizing radiation, but many common scintillator materials are damaged by low energy radiation in the range of a few hundred keV 1 .…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Radiation hardness of polycrystalline ceramic scintillators for radioisotope batteries

Jarrell

Cherepy

Seeley

et al. 2022

Hard X-Ray, Gamma-Ray, and Neutron Detector Physics XXIV

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The usefulness of GYGAG(Ce) transparent polycrystalline ceramic garnet scintillators as the conversion medium in alpha and beta-fueled radioisotope batteries was explored through 0.5 to 3.5 MeV helium ion, alpha, and 0.5-2 MeV electron irradiations. Absorption spectra and light yields were measured before and after irradiations. Within experimental error no degradation in light yield was observed for the electron-irradiated samples as measured via beta or gamma excitation. A small increase in optical absorption near the emission wavelength was observed following the largest dose electron irradiation. Significant reduction in light yield was observed following helium ion irradiation. Partial recovery of the light yield was observed following annealing in oxygen above 400oC for helium ion irradiated samples. These results suggest that GYGAG(Ce) may prove useful for beta-fueled scintillation-based radioisotope batteries by allowing for higher energy beta emitters, increased power densities, and long service lifetimes.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Radiation hardness of polycrystalline ceramic scintillators for radioisotope batteries

Jarrell

Cherepy

Seeley

et al. 2022

Hard X-Ray, Gamma-Ray, and Neutron Detector Physics XXIV

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“…Nuclear batteries are ideal as energy sources for unattended miniaturized systems used in the terrestrial, deep sea, and space environments, owing to their advantages, such as expected long service life, no need for external energy input, and high environmental stability. [1][2][3][4][5] Nuclear batteries made of radiovoltaic (RV) cells, directly convert the decay energy of a radioisotope into electrical energy by using semiconductor diodes, which are usually adopted because of their compact size and high theoretical power conversion efficiency (PCE). [6][7][8][9] However, they usually undergo remarkable degradation of output performance due to the inevitable radiation damage of semiconductor material under high-energy radioisotope radiation.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

High Efficiency Formamidinium‐Cesium Perovskite‐Based Radio‐Photovoltaic Cells

Gao

Chen

Wan

et al. 2022

Energy & Environ Materials

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Radio‐photovoltaic cell is a micro nuclear battery for devices operating in extreme environments, which converts the decay energy of a radioisotope into electric energy by using a phosphor and a photovoltaic converter. Many phosphors with high light yield and good environmental stability have been developed, but the performance of radio‐photovoltaic cells remains far behind expectations in terms of power density and power conversion efficiency, because of the poor photoelectric conversion efficiency of traditional photovoltaic converters under low‐light conditions. This paper reports an radio‐photovoltaic cell based on an intrinsically stable formamidinium‐cesium perovskite photovoltaic converter exhibiting a wide light wavelength response from 300 to 800 nm, high open‐circuit voltage (VOC), and remarkable efficiency at low‐light intensity. When a He ions accelerator is adopted as a mimicked α radioisotope source with an equivalent activity of 0.83 mCi cm−2, the formamidinium‐cesium perovskite radio‐photovoltaic cell achieves a VOC of 0.498 V, a short‐circuit current (JSC) of 423.94 nA cm−2, and a remarkable power conversion efficiency of 0.886%, which is 6.6 times that of the Si reference radio‐photovoltaic cell, as well as the highest among all radio‐photovoltaic cells reported so far. This work provides a theoretical basis for enhancing the performance of radio‐photovoltaic cells.

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