SBIR Phase I: Direct Conversion of Heat to Electricity with Nanowire Antenna Arrays

这个小型企业创新研究（SBIR）第一阶段项目将证明使用单片集成的纳米线天线/整流二极管阵列（IR-AAID）从加热源收集并转换为直流电源红外辐射（IR）的可行性。 在低成本基板上使用可缩放、自组织和廉价的电化学处理，天线/二极管系统可以被设计成通过简单地改变天线几何形状来转换来自具有特定特性的特定热源/发射器的IR辐射。与传统的基于半导体的红外光伏材料及其相关的低效率，高材料成本，温度敏感性和匹配的高温发射器要求不同，IR-AAID系统可以以超过40%的效率将热量转换为电能。最好的IR光伏模块通常在低于5%的效率下工作，需要1200至2000摄氏度的发射器温度以匹配可用的带隙，并且需要非常昂贵的材料，其具有化学定制的成分以匹配特定的能量应用。这项技术的商业和更广泛的影响将是低成本的纳米线阵列，具有高密度和可调的直径/长度纵横比在一个相对较大的面积为集热应用。这些应用将从使用低温热量的便携式电源组变化到从高温核和常规热源发电，其中噪声或其他环境问题是一个问题。

This Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Phase I project will demonstrate the feasibility of collecting and converting to DC power infrared radiation (IR) from heated sources using monolithically integrated, nanowire antenna/rectifying diode arrays (IR-AAID). Using scaleable, self-organizing, and inexpensive electrochemical processing on low cost substrates, the antenna/diode systems can be engineered to convert IR radiation from a particular heat source/emitter with specific characteristics by simply changing the antenna geometry. Unlike traditional semiconductor-based IR photovoltaic materials with their associated low efficiencies, high material costs, temperature sensitivity and matched high temperature emitter requirements, an IR-AAID system could potentially convert heat to electricity at over 40% efficiency. The best IR photovoltaic modules typically operate at less than 5% efficiency, require 1200 to 2000 Celsius emitter temperatures to match available band gaps, and require very expensive materials with chemically tailored compositions to match specific energy applications. The commercial and broader impacts of this technology will be low-cost nanowire arrays with high density and tunable diameter/length aspect ratios over a relatively large area for heat collection applications. These applications will vary from portable power packs that use low temperature heat, to the generation of electricity from high temperature nuclear and conventional heat sources where noise or other environmental concerns are an issue.