A radioluminescent nuclear battery using volumetric configuration: ⁶³Ni solution/ZnS:Cu,Al/InGaP

Area of Science:

• Materials Science
• Nuclear Engineering
• Energy Storage

Background:

• Compact, remote sensors require high-energy-density power sources.
• Nuclear batteries offer superior energy density over chemical batteries.
• Optimizing power generation in beta-photovoltaic (β-PV) devices is crucial.

Purpose of the Study:

• To enhance power density in beta-photovoltaic (β-PV) nuclear batteries.
• To investigate the efficacy of a volumetric (3D) configuration over a planar (2D) design.
• To integrate nickel-63 (⁶³Ni) radioisotope with a phosphor film for energy conversion.

Main Methods:

• Utilized a 3D configuration integrating ⁶³Ni in a chloride solution within a phosphor film (ZnS:Cu,Al).
• Converted beta-minus (β⁻) energy to optical energy, then to electrical energy using an indium gallium phosphate (InGaP) photovoltaic (PV) cell.
• Optimized the InGaP PV cell for low light and radioluminescence (RL) spectrum matching.

Main Results:

• The 3D configuration demonstrated superior energy values compared to the 2D configuration at 15mCi ⁶³Ni activity.
• Achieved a highest total power conversion efficiency (ηt) of 0.289% for the 3D configuration (at 200µm) versus 0.0638% for 2D (at 50µm).
• The 3D configuration yielded higher electrical power output (3.35 nWₑ/cm²) at 30mCi ⁶³Ni activity.

Conclusions:

• The 3D configuration significantly increases the interaction space, leading to enhanced electrical energy output.
• This approach represents a foundational step towards achieving milliwatt-level power density in nuclear batteries.
• Future work will explore higher energy beta-minus (β⁻) sources for further power density improvements.