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Research Platform

Micro Energy Sources Platform

The micro energy sources platform concentrates at a single location all the resources needed to design power supply systems for smart cards, sensors, laptop computers and much more. The 1,000 sq. m platform is home to 30 items of equipment suitable for scaling up these technologies for industrial manufacturing.

Published on 25 February 2017

​Batteries and fuel cells 

The micro energy source platform concentrates at a single location all the resources needed to design power supply systems for smart cards, sensors, laptop computers and much more. The 1,000 sq. m platform is home to 30 items of equipment suitable for scaling up these technologies for industrial manufacturing.

The platform develops micro batteries and micro fuel cells with a sharp focus on enhancing materials to improve performance. It leverages technologies, such as thin-layer deposition for batteries, and investigates ways of improving fuel-cell catalyst and collector performance and lifespans. 

The advanced equipment available at the platform includes a five-PVD chamber unit capable of depositing a series of thin layers. The platform can develop processes all the way to industrial scale-up. It operates with two major partners: STMicroelectronics for micro batteries measuring thicknesses of around 100 microns and Intelligent Energy for mobile electronic device fuel cell chargers. 

KEY FIGURES:
  • 1,000 sq. m of clean rooms
  • €20 million in equipment
  • 50 engineers and technicians
  • 30 patents filed per year
R&D AREAS: 
Micro batteries (from a few μWh to 100 mWh) and micro fuel cells (from 5 W to 100 W)

NOTABLE EQUIPMENT:
Around 30 pieces of equipment, including PVD-CVD 
LOCATION:
Leti and Liten (Grenoble)