Of course, from the phone maker standpoint this would put a crimp in the yearly upgrade cycle… Which would make a small additional dose rate worth it, perhaps, just to see them trying to rationalize it.
I don’t see 28k year lifetimes, though. Apart from the half-life issue, most devices like this ultimately rely on a semiconductor junction between materials with different dopings to convert something – heat, ionization, light – to an electrical potential. Over time the dopants will diffuse across the boundary layer and the device will fail. This same phenomenon is why solar cells, for instance, have a limited lifespan.
There has been talk about the Radioactive Diamond Batteries on some of the trade magazine sites for a while, and I’ve leaned toward the approach of “show me a working prototype and some evidence” about the story. I obviously don’t expect them to show me evidence the battery actually worked for 28,000 years, but some good data to demonstrate why they think their particular approach can last that long.
There’s a long history of high tech startups trying to get people to invest in them when there really isn’t anything there that justifies it.
This is the 64th anniversasry of Starfish Prime, the largest nuclear weapon discharged space. It was 900 miles fro Honolulu, yet the EMP effects knocked out about 300 streetlights, burglar alarms, and a telephone company Read more…
A recent post looked at the out of control spending of Cape Canaveral. Both parties are busy screaming about how the proposed elimination of homestead property taxes are going to cause police, fire, and schools Read more…
This is the time of year that my Amazon Prime membership comes up for renewal. I’ve been buying from Amazon since 2003. That was back when Amazon only sold books. In fact, I didn’t buy Read more…
3 Comments
it's just Boris · April 6, 2021 at 7:21 am
Of course, from the phone maker standpoint this would put a crimp in the yearly upgrade cycle… Which would make a small additional dose rate worth it, perhaps, just to see them trying to rationalize it.
I don’t see 28k year lifetimes, though. Apart from the half-life issue, most devices like this ultimately rely on a semiconductor junction between materials with different dopings to convert something – heat, ionization, light – to an electrical potential. Over time the dopants will diffuse across the boundary layer and the device will fail. This same phenomenon is why solar cells, for instance, have a limited lifespan.
SiG · April 6, 2021 at 9:41 am
There has been talk about the Radioactive Diamond Batteries on some of the trade magazine sites for a while, and I’ve leaned toward the approach of “show me a working prototype and some evidence” about the story. I obviously don’t expect them to show me evidence the battery actually worked for 28,000 years, but some good data to demonstrate why they think their particular approach can last that long.
There’s a long history of high tech startups trying to get people to invest in them when there really isn’t anything there that justifies it.
it's just Boris · April 6, 2021 at 9:45 pm
Agreed.
All I want for Christmas is a Shipstone…
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