Three-dimensional microbatteries for MEMS/NEMS technology

We recently developed a new approach for battery design based on three-dimensional architectures which offer potential solutions for powering autonomous devices and maintaining small footprint areas. This paper provides a brief review of our work which applies micromachining methods to fabricate electrode arrays which serve as the central design element for these architectures. The results with the zinc-air primary batteries demonstrate that 3D configurations can achieve both high power and energy densities within a small footprint area. The development of lithium-ion batteries has not been as rapid although reversible electrochemical behavior has been demonstrated with 3D electrode array structures.