Research Paper: Evaluation of Different Semiconductors Effect on Radio-Isotopic Battery Performance

Abstract

This work aimed to theoretically investigate the operation of the beta voltaic battery with the 14C radio isotopic source and several semiconductors in the p-n junction structure. For this purpose, the saturated thickness of the 14C beta source and energy deposition distribution of beta particles emitted from this source is simulated and calculated in the various semiconductors including the GaAs, GaN, SiC, and diamond using the Monte Carlo code of MCNPX. Regarding the results obtained, the optimized 14C thickness was achieved by 30 micrometers. Then, applying the analytical and numerical model, the relationships between the doping concentration, short circuit current density, open circuit voltage, and output power density were evaluated. The results showed that with and with the diamond as semiconductor, the output power density of designed battery was increased to 9.68 among the other considered semiconductors.

Keywords

• beta-voltaic battery
• semiconductor
• 14c source
• p-n junction