A multifunctional load-bearing solid-state supercapacitor.

Westover, Andrew S; Tian, John W; Bernath, Shivaprem; Oakes, Landon; Edwards, Rob; Shabab, Farhan N; Chatterjee, Shahana; Anilkumar, Amrutur V et al. · Nano Lett · 2014

basic_science · Level V

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Abstract

A load-bearing, multifunctional material with the simultaneous capability to store energy and withstand static and dynamic mechanical stresses is demonstrated. This is produced using ion-conducting polymers infiltrated into nanoporous silicon that is etched directly into bulk conductive silicon. This device platform maintains energy densities near 10 W h/kg with Coulombic efficiency of 98% under exposure to over 300 kPa tensile stresses and 80 g vibratory accelerations, along with excellent performance in other shear, compression, and impact tests. This demonstrates performance feasibility as a structurally integrated energy storage material broadly applicable across renewable energy systems, transportation systems, and mobile electronics, among others.