High-performance alpha-voltaic cell based on a 4H-SiC PIN junction diode

•High-performance and long-life alpha-voltaic cell based on SiC diode was fabricated.•The AV cell achieved excellent PCE of 0.88%, with a strikingly high Voc of 1.99 V.•Main factors that influence the performance of AV cell have been analyzed in depth. Alpha-voltaic cells have great potential in mil...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Published in:Energy conversion and management 2022-01, Vol.252, p.115090, Article 115090
Main Authors: Gao, Runlong, Liu, Linyue, Li, Yang, Shen, Lvkang, Wan, Pengying, Ouyang, Xiao, Zhang, Haozhe, Ruan, Jinlu, Zhou, Leidang, Chen, Liang, Zhang, Xianpeng, Liu, Jinliang, Li, Hui, Liu, Ming, Ouyang, Xiaoping
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
4H-SiC PIN junction diode
Adaptability
Alpha rays
Alpha-voltaic cell
Circuits
Electrical properties
Energy conversion
Energy conversion efficiency
High power conversion efficiency
Junction diodes
Military applications
Open circuit voltage
Radiation damage
Semiconductor devices
Short circuit currents
Short-circuit current
Silicon carbide
Transducers
Citations: Items that this one cites
Items that cite this one
Online Access:Get full text
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
Description
Summary:•High-performance and long-life alpha-voltaic cell based on SiC diode was fabricated.•The AV cell achieved excellent PCE of 0.88%, with a strikingly high Voc of 1.99 V.•Main factors that influence the performance of AV cell have been analyzed in depth. Alpha-voltaic cells have great potential in military, biomedical, and infrastructure applications due to their characteristics of long operating life, small volume, and superior adaptability. However, improvements in power conversion efficiency (PCE), and the balance between power density and stability have been a challenge owing to the ‘poor-matching’ between energy conversion transducers and alpha-emitting isotope sources, as well as the radiation damage to semiconductor devices. In this study, we report the electrical properties of a high-performance alpha-voltaic cell based on a 4H-SiC PIN junction diode energy conversion transducer (active area of 1 cm2) that has been experimentally validated by a He ions electrostatic accelerator. Remarkably, the alpha-voltaic cell displayed an excellent PCE of 0.88%, exhibiting a nearly 7-fold enhancement compared to alpha-voltaic cells of previous studies, with a strikingly high open-circuit voltage of 1.99 V, a short-circuit current of 13.64 nA/cm2, and a maximum output power density of 16.78 nW/cm2.
ISSN:0196-8904
1879-2227
DOI:10.1016/j.enconman.2021.115090