Nuclear batteries are as far away from atom bombs as Earth is from Moon, hypothetically speaking. There is no thermo nuclear explosion releasing uncontrolled energy. Instead, nuclear batteries draw their energy from the natural decay of radio isotopes. There has been a delay in bringing nuclear power batteries to market. But now there are signs of a commercial future on the horizon.
Nuclear Power Batteries That Never Need Recharging
Chinese battery maker Betavolt announced a nuclear battery in February 2024, that it said would never require recharging. The company press release opened a vision of drones that flew forever, and phones with unlimited battery time.
The prototype contained Nickel-63 within a small coin-sized module, according to Independent news channel. Pilot testing was ongoing at the time of the press release, with the intention of bringing nuclear power batteries to market for consumer applications.
“Atomic energy batteries can meet the needs of long-lasting power supply in multiple scenarios,” the press release claimed. It went on to mention aerospace, medical equipment, microprocessors, advanced sensors, small drones and micro-robots.
However, this was not ‘new news’ in the broader sense, because the United States and the Soviet Union used the technology to power their spacecraft half a century earlier.
Spacecraft to Miniaturization, The Possibilities Are Endless
These atomic-powered batteries are actually not batteries at all, although they do contain a source of energy. This is because they don’t have the cathodes and anodes that normally take up so much space.
Perhaps this is how the Betavolt version delivers 100 micro-watts of power at 3 volts, while measuring a mere 15 by 5 by 5 millimeters. And so the race is on for others to catch up.
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Applications for Atomic Batteries in Society
