Future device engineers could benefit from increased design flexibility, by having the ability to place energy storage units wherever they like — such as in the left-over spaces around other functional components.
The breakthrough from a research team at the University of Missouri relates to a new laser writing method called Direct Laser Writing (DLW), whose potential applications include the ability to fabricate small energy storage units in tight spaces.
This could help device makers deal with the ever-increasing demand for thinner and lighter form factors. A major limit today lies with the energy sources, which are increasingly being squeezed into smaller, and oddly shaped spaces.
According to Assistant Professor Jian Lin, from the Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering at the University of Missouri, the main goal of the research was to find an efficient and cost-effective way to integrate nanostructures with micro energy storage units.
“Our lab decided to test whether catalysts could be synthesized and patterned on any surface by a one-step laser processing method to produce microbatteries and micro fuel cells in the shapes dictated by computer programs,” he explained.
The researchers adapted the Direct Laser Writing method to synthesise and pattern hybrid nanocatalysts into complex geometric shapes.
By using computer-controlled laser writing with higher heat and pressure, the scientists utilised their modified Direct Laser Writing to create battery cells whose surfaces are both electrically conductive, and also contain catalytic properties.
Engineers and manufacturers will be able to use this technology to create micro-batteries that convert chemical energy into electrical power, and can fit into devices as small as necessary for their designs.
The breakthrough not only allows devices to be designed smaller, but also the micro fuel cells that utilise oxygen or hydrogen as fuel in consumer-grade electronics. The technique can also be used to produce microsupercapacitors.
As the process continues to be refined, engineers and manufacturers will be able to design and produce components in whatever shape or size they choose, greatly impacting the size and flexibility of their designs.