The First Self-Powering Nano-Device That Can Also Transmit Wireless Data
A Self-Powering Nano-Transmitter via ACS Scientists working with DARPA and Department of Energy backing have cracked the code on a kind of technological milestone, for the first time developing a nano-device capable of powering itself by harvesting energy from vibrations while at the same time transmitting data wirelessly over long distances. That kind of technology could have huge implications for devices ranging from surveillance implements to airborne sensors to implantable medical devices. Publishing their findings in the journal ACS Nano Letters, the team describes a nanogenerator that turns mechanical vibrations scavenged from anything from a person's pulse to a breeze to a person walking or cars driving over a bridge into electricity to power the device. That in and of itself isn't so impressive, as such vibration-driven generators already existed previously. The game-changer here is the fact that this nano-device can generate and store (in a capacitor) enough energy to also transmit...
