Diamond-based beta-voltaics: an ultra-long life energy solution for use in challenging environments

Known to most as a gemstone, Diamond is actually a semiconductor material, with electronic properties that far surpass those of conventional electronic materials such as silicon. Diamonds extreme resilience towards hostile environments, including high radiation and high temperatures make it an ideal platform for the fabrication of electronic devices for use in applications where other semiconductor devices simply fail. The recent emergence of laboratory grown diamond, and methods for doping and processing diamond for device applications provide the entry point for this PhD programme. The proposed PhD project aims to ally the capability of diamond to absorb, and maintain in a stable form, tritium as a beta source, with a diamond diode structure for what can be anticipated to be a high efficiency ultra-stable beta-voltaic device for use in many environments that conventional battery technology cannot address. As such, diamond structures will be characterised and under a wide-range of tritium(deuterium) enhanced conditions, and the material stability of these layers evaluated under accelerated lifetime test conditions. The prospects for these materials to be used in future beta-voltaic battery energy solutions will be fully evaluated.