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Journalism of Courage
Thermo-power waves may be the ideal power source for tiny electronic devices and micro-systems,says a team led by an Indian-origin scientist.
In their research,Sumeet Walia and colleagues at RMIT University have outlined the creation of new semiconducting structures for the generation of thermo-power waves at micro-scale 8212; a new technology that could enable tiny power sources with unprecedented capacity.
According to the scientists,thermo-power waves could be used as micro-power sources for a broad range of miniaturised applications.
8220;Tiny electronic devices powered by thermo-power waves could apply large energies to targeted cancer cells inside the human body,enabling an exceptional level of precision in cancer treatment,8221; team member Kourosh Kalantar-zadeh said.
8220;They could help realise concepts like 8216;smartdust8217; 8212; micro-electromechanical systems that are networked wirelessly for sensing and receiving data,for example testing pH of soil in large agricultural fields water reserves,8221; he added.
According to Walia,the size of power sources had not kept pace with the ever-reducing size of electronics.
He wrote in the 8216;Energy amp; Environmental Science8217; journal: 8220;The development of miniaturised energy sources is a key challenge to overcome in order to build the next generation of electronic devices.
8220;We focus on thermo-power waves 8212; which generate intense waves of electrical current by sweeping electrical carriers from one end of materials to another 8212; because of their potential for creating smallscale power sources that can release energy at very high rates.
8220;Our work demonstrates a new class of micro-power sources and shows it is possible to obtain alternating output signals with opposite polarities,which is crucial for developing alternating signal sources.8221;
