MITRE's R&D in Nano-Enabled Power
MITRE's Nanosystems Group conducts a broadly-based
research and development effort in the area of nano-enabled energy storage
and power systems. These efforts include both reviews and analysis of the
state-of-the-art in nano-enabled power and energy devices, as well as physical
experimentation in MITRE's Nanotechnology-Biotechnology Laboratory.
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Current MITRE projects include developing improved battery systems for communications and sensor technologies, and increasing the efficiency of portable power sources. |
The motivation for these investigations is that
conventional energy storage and power system technology has imposed a
severe burden on the "SWaP" (Size, Weight, and Power) budgets
of portable electronic systems. This problem has been exacerbated in recent
years as the field of electronics has continued its exponential increase
in capability and attendant power consumption, while portable energy sources
have seen only modest improvement. However, recent advances in nanotechnology-enabled
devices show much promise to dramatically reduce the size while increasing
the energy and power densities of portable energy systems. Such improvements
would assist greatly, and possibly solve the SWaP challenges associated
with a number of critical applications.
Our efforts in nano-enabled power can be categorized into three primary
areas:
- Review and analysis of state-of-the-art nano-enabled energy storage and
power systems.
- Research and development of hybrid energy storage and power prototypes
that combine the high energy densities of (nano-enabled) batteries with
the high power densities of (super)capacitors.
- Independent verification and validation of the performance of nano-enabled
energy storage and power systems developed for our government sponsors.
This research is conducted by MITRE senior scientists and student researchers through the Nanosystems Group Student Program.
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