New miniature energy sources for nomadic applications. Publication by the CEA
PDAs and other mobile phones have evolved tremendously over the past 10 years. They now offer applications similar to those of a desktop computer ... sometimes better!
These new devices of the iPhone or Blackberry type, to name only the two best known, consume more and more energy, hence the subject of this work by the CEA.
Introduction
The rise of mobile telephony and, more generally, nomadic electronics,
is accompanied by an increased need for miniaturized energy sources (batteries, cells, etc.).
Likewise, in the short and medium term, the emergence of new miniaturized and interactive products in the civil and military fields (autonomous sensors for the development of “smart clothing”, autonomous medical systems, GPS, on-board sensors, etc.) should further accentuate this phenomenon, by opening up new markets.
Great development opportunities are therefore offered to energy production, storage or recovery systems. They will have to respond to the technical challenges raised by next-generation nomadic objects requiring new functionalities: freeing the user from load constraints and offering a longer duration of use, guaranteeing the inviolability of information, "harvesting" energy available in the local environment and thus constitute an isolated and autonomous energy source, allowing the implantation in the human body and, for long periods, of biocompatible devices ...
To meet these challenges, the use of miniature energy sources, systems
recovery, storage and conversion of energy is essential. Most of the time, their development is based on processes similar to those used in microelectronics. But there are still a number of technological breakthroughs that must be overcome.
These involve the use of new materials and processes to improve performance. Finally, the optimization of the complete energy yield often requires the hybridization of several different energy sources (recovery system associated with an energy storage system).
To find out more: document on storage and production of energy from the human body