A team of university researchers has developed a new 3D printing method to reduce the complexity and time required to produce the intricate nanoscale structures required for fabricating glass micro-supercapacitors (MSCs). The findings could lead to more efficient compact devices such as advanced sensors or wearable devices.
The work, published in ACS Nano, addresses two key challenges in device manufacturing. With MSC performance largely dictated by its electrodes, increasing electrode surface area is essential to increasing performance. Additionally, nanoscale channels are required to facilitate rapid ion transport.
During their research, the team discovered that ultrashort laser pulses induce the formation of self-organized nanoplates while converting the precursor into silicon-rich glass in hydrogen silsesquioxane. These simultaneous reactions enable fast and precise fabrication of electrodes that contain a high density of open channels to maximize surface area while accelerating ion transport.
"Our findings represent a significant leap forward in microfabrication, with broad implications for the development of high-performance energy storage devices," said Po-Han Huang, who was lead author of the study at the KTH Royal Institute of Technology. "Beyond MSCs, our approach has exciting potential applications in fields such as optical communication, nanoelectromechanical sensors and 5D optical data storage."
Additionally, the findings could improve non-micro supercapacitors that are already in use for technologies such as energy harvesting during braking, power supply stabilization in consumer electronics, and renewable energy capture optimization. "Micro-supercapacitors have the potential to make these applications more compact and efficient," added Frank Niklaus, professor of micro- and nanosystems at KTH.