 that draws energy from the ambient
environment, a sensor measures blood
glucose or pressure in this conceptual image.)
Powered by a nanogenerator (foreground) that draws energy from the ambient
environment, a sensor measures blood
glucose or pressure in this conceptual image.
Image: ADAM QUESTELL
In Brief
- Nanotechnology has huge potential—but those minuscule devices will need a power source that is better than a battery.
- Waste energy, in the form of vibrations or even the human pulse, could provide sufficient power to run such tiny gadgets.
- Arrays of piezoelectric nanowires could capture and transmit that waste energy to nanodevices.
- Medical devices will likely be a major application. A pacemaker’s battery could be charged so it would not need replacing, or implanted wireless nanosensors could monitor blood glucose for diabetics.
—The Editors
The watchmaker in the 1920s who devised the self-winding wristwatch was on to a great idea: mechanically harvesting energy from the wearer’s moving arm and putting it to work rewinding the watch spring.
Today we are beginning to create extremely small energy harvesters that can supply electrical power to the tiny world of nanoscale devices, where things are measured in billionths of a meter. We call these power plants nanogenerators. The ability to make power on a minuscule scale allows us to think of implantable biosensors that can continuously monitor a patient’s blood glucose level, or autonomous strain sensors for structures such as bridges, or environmental sensors for detecting toxins—all running without the need for replacement batteries. Energy sources are desperately needed for nanorobotics, microelectromechanical systems (MEMS), homeland security and even portable personal electronics. It is hard to imagine all the uses such infinitesimal generators may eventually find.
This article was originally published with the title Self-Powered Nanotech.
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2 Comments
Add CommentWhile the potential benefits of nanotechnology are obvious, various researchers have also cautioned about the likelihood that any nanobiotechnological device that is smart enough to circulate through the body hunting viruses or cancer cells would also be smart enough to exchange information with that human body. In other words, there is the potential for the device to evolve & beyond its function. I find this as disturbing as it is exciting.
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to thisSince we are talking about very tiny devices with close spacing, could not the Casimir Effect be used as a power source? That is, a tilting teeter-totter plate next to fixed plate, with shutters on each half of titling plate to alternate which half gets pushed down (with a power coverter connected to rotating pivot)? A kind of tiny Casimir Effect oil-well pump with two 'heads'. Need a lot of these for macro-size power, but not much for a nano-machine.
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to thisNathan Okun