Nanotech Device Can Turn Human Motion into Energy

12/11/2016 3:54:15 PM

Sunday, December 11, 2016 - 15:54

Researchers at the Michigan State University have developed a nanotechnology device which can turn human motion into energy.

As thin as film, this nanotechnology device is able to turn human motion into energy which means that a mere finger swipe over a smartphone screen can keep it running indefinitely. Similarly, by typing on keyboards, laptop batteries will be charged. Fitness trackers too can gain power from the kinetics of jogging feet, Tech Times reports.

"What I foresee, relatively soon, is the capability of not having to charge your cell phone for an entire week, for example, because that energy will be produced by your movement," said Nelson Sepulveda, lead researcher and associate professor of electrical engineering at Michigan.

The experts showcased a prototype device that is flexible, thin and apt for many applications. The processes are enabled by the device's structure that is built on a silicon wafer, where layers are separated by walls of thin polypropylene ferroelectric, silver, and polyimide slices.

The Michigan researchers affirm that the biocompatible ferroelectric nanogenerator, or FENG, has the potential to turn into "a promising alternative in the field of mechanical energy harvesting" as far as autonomous electronics such as cell phones, wireless headsets, and touch-screen devices are concerned.

The technology is discussed in greater detail in the Nano Energy Journal.