Nuclear battery runs for decades

A battery with a lifespan measured in decades is in development at the

, as scientists demonstrate a new fabrication method that in its roughest form is already 10 times more efficient than current nuclear batteries, and has the potential to be nearly 200 times more efficient.

“For 50 years, people have been investigating converting simple nuclear decay into usable energy, but the yields were always too low,” says Philippe Fauchet, professor of electrical and computer engineering at the University of Rochester. “We’ve found a way to make the interaction much more efficient, and we hope these findings will lead to a new kind of battery that can pump out energy for years.”

The technology is geared toward applications where power is needed in inaccessible places or under extreme conditions. Since the battery should be able to run reliably for more than 10 years without recharge or replacement, it would be perfect for medical devices like pacemakers, implanted defibrillators, or other implanted devices that would otherwise require surgery to replace or repair. Likewise, deep-space probes or deep-sea sensors, which are beyond the reach of repair, also would benefit from such technology.