Future energy source from infrared rays

While using plates that absorb sunlight to convert them into energy, researchers at the Idaho National Laboratory have experimented with a new way of collecting: using infrared to obtain unprecedented high energy energy.

The group of scientists led by Michael Naughton (of Boston School in Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts, USA) presented the study at the 2nd international conference on energy innovation by American Society of Mechanical Engineers. August 13 at Jacksonville.

They installed sensors that correspond to the length of the infrared wave, longer than the length of the light seen with the naked eye (this wave can also go beyond the length of current photovoltaic cells).

Researchers used woven panels with millions of tiny, sensitive antennas for solar photons of the sun and other sources. This is the first step in the process of collecting energy at a low cost and in large quantities.

Nano-sized antennas can receive average infrared, such as infrared shining down to earth, even at midnight, after absorbing solar energy throughout the day. Meanwhile, solar cells currently in use only obtain visible sunlight, and lose their effect at night. Moreover, after further development, these nano antennas are also capable of absorbing the excess heat of objects at night, and transforming this wasted energy into electricity.

Gold nano antennas are tested and tested on a silicon bug and operate at a frequency of 30 tera.(Photo: Idaho National Laboratory)

These small parts are made in the form of a gold coil, with a pillar on the bottom, with poly-ethylene (a material commonly used in plastic bags). Dale Kotter, a member of the research team, said that among the low-frequency waves of the electromagnetic spectrum, many other researchers, such as microwaves and infrared waves, were most concerned about. . He added that one of the reasons for choosing infrared rays is because the physical properties of the materials will change as they are affected by this wave.

They tested the reaction of many materials, including copper, gold and manganese, when placing them under the action of infrared rays, through computerized processing to determine the types of structural shapes and have the best antenna size. The perfect model of all these parameters, will allow the yield of up to 92% of the infrared rays, which conventional solar collectors cannot achieve.

The researchers created the first prototypes tested by computer science. Nano antennas have been installed in the usual way by looping around a silicon disk, and they are capable of absorbing up to 80% of the amount of infrared light being projected.

They were then moved to the step of etching on the thin poly-ethylene-based pillar and approached the step of carrying out infrared absorption. Although the antenna is still in test at this time, the first results show that their ability to absorb infrared rays is up to 50-60%, fully meeting the requirements.

Efforts to become household energy

However, these techniques need to be further refined to enable this new type of energy to be used in households. The projection of infra-red rays on the nanoparticles creates alternate currents with frequencies of up to 30 terahertz, this requires a power adapter to turn this stream into a continuous stream. However, there are currently no electric devices that can withstand this frequency, and even no separation device can be used to harness this energy. And scientists are still trying to solve this problem.

If this problem is solved, we will have more efficient solar collectors, 20% more efficient than the visible light energy. Scientists have developed and implemented more complex devices, which are more productive, but currently cost the devices quite expensive to put into common use.

In order to produce relatively simple devices by installing on low-cost objects, these nano-antennas need to withstand different infrared irradiation frequencies depending on their size and construction. They may have a shell made of various common objects, such as a laptop or a mobile phone, to provide them with continuous energy and cheaper prices.