Nb-based anodes to enable safe high energy and power batteries for medical devices

可充电电池在植入式医疗设备中发挥着重要作用，例如用于抑制震颤的深部脑刺激器。在这种应用中，安全是最重要的。这种电池最先进的阳极是钛酸锂，它在高电位下工作，减轻了安全问题。然而，高电位导致能量密度显著降低，从而限制了这些电池的应用。新的铌基阳极材料很有前途，因为它们可以继续在安全电位下工作，但允许近两倍的锂存储，并且可以以更高的速率运行，从而提供更高的功率。然而，到目前为止，由于电池使用过程中的有害变化（如颗粒破裂），这些材料尚未集成到可植入设备中。在此，原位表征将用于充分理解这些转变，以便设计一种在可植入设备所需条件下更具弹性的材料。然后，将以高通量的方式筛选各种各样的材料组合物，以减轻这些物理限制。此外，机器学习算法将被用于大幅增加探索材料的数量，并预测共替代在多大程度上可能是有益的。与我们的工业合作伙伴美敦力公司合作，新开发的材料将在现实条件下进行测试，以确认其用于医疗设备的可行性。这些高能量安全电池的开发将使神经调节类的新型植入式设备和传感器/监视器（例如葡萄糖传感器）等可穿戴设备成为可能。这些新的经济机会对加拿大人来说非常重要，不仅可以改善个人健康，还可以为美敦力在加拿大的生产设施带来好处。

Rechargeable batteries play important roles in implantable medical devices such as deep-brain stimulators to suppress tremors. In such applications, safety is of primary importance. The state-of-the-art anode for such batteries is lithium titanate that operates at a high potential mitigating safety concerns. However, high potential results in a significantly reduced energy density, thereby limiting the applications of these batteries. New Nb-based anode materials are promising in that they continue to operate at safe potentials but allow to nearly double the lithium storage and can be operated at higher rates giving a higher power. However, these materials have, to date, not been integrated into implantable devices due to detrimental transformations during battery use such as particle cracking. Herein, in-situ characterization will be used to fully understand these transformations in order to design a material that is more resilient under the conditions required for implantable devices. Then, a wide variety of material compositions will be screened in high-throughput fashion in order to mitigate these physical limitations. Furthermore, machine-learning algorithms will be utilized to dramatically increase the number of explored materials and predict to what extent co-substitution may be beneficial. In collaboration with our industrial partner, Medtronic Inc., the newly developed materials will be tested under realistic conditions to confirm their viability for medical devices. The development of these higher energy safe batteries will enable new implantable devices in the neuromodulation category and wearable devices such as sensor/monitors (e.g. glucose sensors). These new economic opportunities are important for Canadians both in terms of improved personal health and for the benefits to Medtronic manufacturing facilities in Canada.