Photovoltaic nuclear energy coupling cell

Abstract

The application relates to the technical field of energy conversion, and discloses a photovoltaic nuclear energy coupling cell, which comprises a radioactive radiation source unit, a radiation excitation light-emitting unit, a photovoltaic conversion unit, a photon regulation and energy coupling unit, an electric output unit and a packaging shielding unit. The radiation excitation light-emitting unit is composed of a perovskite light-emitting material, is used for absorbing decay particles and releasing light radiation, the photovoltaic conversion unit is used for absorbing the light radiation to generate electric energy, and the photon regulation and energy coupling unit is used for light path guiding and refractive index matching. The application decouples energy conversion into a multistage relay process from radiation energy to light energy and then to electric energy, constructs a micro-nano coalescence or spontaneous light-emitting multilayer gradient structure, optimizes the local energy deposition path of particles in the light-emitting medium, and reduces interface scattering loss. The structure avoids direct radiation damage of decay particles to a photovoltaic junction region, significantly improves energy conversion efficiency and device service life, and is suitable for nuclear micro power supplies and nuclear waste energy recovery systems.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This application relates to the field of energy conversion technology, specifically a photovoltaic-nuclear energy coupled battery. Background Technology

[0002] A photovoltaic-nuclear coupled battery is a miniature energy device that indirectly converts the physical decay energy of radioactive isotopes into electrical energy. This type of device uses a luminescent material as an intermediate energy conversion hub. A scintillator medium absorbs the energy of alpha particles, beta particles, or secondary electrons released from a radioactive source, exciting the material to generate charge carriers and release light radiation. Subsequently, a peripherally arranged photovoltaic semiconductor device absorbs this light radiation, and through the photoelectric effect, electron-hole separation occurs within the semiconductor junction region, ultimately outputting stable direct current power to an external circuit.

[0003] In existing photovoltaic-nuclear coupled battery engineering designs, devices generally adopt a macroscopic layered stacking assembly configuration. The specific physical structure is as follows: a radioactive isotope is independently prepared as a planar radiation source film, a scintillation luminescent medium is independently prepared as a luminescent film, and the photovoltaic device serves as an independent bottom-layer absorber structure. These three components are stacked sequentially from top to bottom through mechanical pressing or physical deposition. To prevent the diffusion of radioactive materials and for material chemical compatibility, a protective insulating layer composed of inorganic oxides or polymers is typically placed between the independent radiation source film and the scintillation luminescent film. In operation, high-energy particles released from the radiation source originate from the source region, penetrate the insulating layer and interlayer interfaces along a straight line or scattering trajectory, and ultimately enter the scintillation luminescent film to induce fluorescence.

[0004] The aforementioned traditional macroscopic layered stacking configuration results in extremely low local deposition efficiency of decay energy within the luminescent medium. Before entering the effective luminescent region, high-energy particles must traverse the inactive matrix of the radiation source itself, the interlayer insulating medium, and the physical assembly interfaces. During this long physical transport path, particles frequently collide with inactive inert atoms, resulting in severe physical scattering and ineffective thermal dissipation. This long-distance inter-interface transport consumes most of the initial kinetic energy of the high-energy particles, drastically reducing the proportion of energy that can be effectively converted into excited-state charge carriers upon entering the scintillator, significantly lowering the first-order physical conversion efficiency of nuclear radiation energy into light radiation. Summary of the Invention

[0005] To address the shortcomings of existing technologies, this application provides a photovoltaic-nuclear coupled battery that solves the problems mentioned in the background section.

[0006] To achieve the above objectives, this application provides the following technical solution: The first aspect of this application provides a photovoltaic-nuclear energy coupled battery, comprising:

[0007] A radioactive radiation source unit, which contains radioactive nuclides for releasing high-energy particles through spontaneous decay; A radiation-excited luminescent unit is disposed around the radioactive radiation source unit and is made of perovskite luminescent material. It is used to absorb the high-energy particles and excite electron-hole pairs inside the perovskite luminescent material. The electron-hole pairs release light radiation through a radiative recombination process. A photovoltaic conversion unit is disposed on the light-emitting side of the radiation-excited light-emitting unit, and is used to absorb the light radiation and generate photogenerated charge; A photon modulation and energy coupling unit is disposed at the optical interface between the radiation-excited emission unit and the photovoltaic conversion unit, as well as on the non-light-emitting side of the radiation-excited emission unit, for guiding the optical path and matching the refractive index of the light radiation. An electrical output unit, electrically connected to the photovoltaic conversion unit, is used to collect the photogenerated charge and output DC power to an external load; The encapsulation and shielding unit covers the outside of the radioactive radiation source unit, the radiation-induced light emission unit, the photovoltaic conversion unit, and the photon modulation and energy coupling unit, and is used to provide effective confinement and radiation shielding for the radioactive nuclides, and to maintain the overall structural support.

[0008] The core innovation of this application lies in breaking through the limitations of the single-stage physical conversion of traditional direct beta-volt nuclear batteries, decoupling the energy conversion process into a multi-stage physical relay process of "radiation energy - light energy - electrical energy". By introducing perovskite luminescent materials as intermediate photon conversion media, the system avoids direct physical bombardment of the photovoltaic semiconductor active layer by high-energy particles, thereby cutting off the destructive path of high-energy particles causing lattice defects inside the photovoltaic material.

[0009] To further improve the local energy utilization rate and spectral matching degree in the above-mentioned multi-stage energy conversion process, the second aspect of this application provides two core energy conversion configurations for the photovoltaic-nuclear energy coupled battery: The first configuration is a coalescing energy conversion structure, its innovation lying in the high-density near-field coupling design at the micro-nano scale. Inside the radiatively excited luminescent unit, the radioactive nuclide is coated with inorganic materials to form micron- or nano-sized functional particles. These functional particles do not exist as independent thin film layers, but are diffusely embedded within the perovskite scintillating luminescent matrix according to a predetermined spatial distribution. This near-field coupling significantly shortens the physical range of decaying particles, allowing high-energy particles to enter the adjacent luminescent medium directly within a very short distance after release without needing to cross external inert media or physical gaps, thus completing local energy deposition. This configuration greatly reduces particle scattering and ineffective thermal dissipation, strictly confining lattice damage within the scintillator matrix, thereby significantly improving the efficiency of converting local radiative energy into excited photons.

[0010] The second configuration is a self-luminescent perovskite scintillator structure, whose innovation lies in the hierarchical absorption and directional recombination design of the material's internal energy. The radiatively excited luminescent unit employs a macroscopically independent self-luminescent perovskite scintillator layer. This layer adopts a multi-layered gradient luminescence structure, consisting of perovskite sublayers with different band gaps or luminescent centers stacked along the thickness direction, forming a hierarchical absorption mechanism for decaying particles at different physical penetration depths. Simultaneously, rare-earth ions or other luminescent centers are doped within the luminescent matrix, promoting the directional migration of excited-state carriers towards the luminescent centers and reducing non-radiative recombination losses within the material. Combined with a spectral coupling layer at the optical interface, this configuration significantly improves the stability of fluorescence output and the effective spectral matching degree of the photovoltaic unit in low-flux, low-power nuclear radiation scenarios, achieving efficient recovery of low-grade radiation energy from nuclear waste.

[0011] This application provides a photovoltaic-nuclear coupled battery. It has the following beneficial effects: 1. This application optimizes the local energy deposition path of particles in the luminescent medium by constructing a micro / nano near-field aggregation structure of radionuclides and perovskite luminescent media. Decay energy directly enters the luminescent substrate over an extremely short distance, resulting in local energy deposition, eliminating interface scattering and thermal losses caused by crossing inert media. This physical coupling significantly increases the proportion of energy converted into excited-state carriers, greatly improving the conversion efficiency of radiative energy to light radiation compared to traditional layered structures, thus overcoming the low energy deposition efficiency of existing micro-power sources.

[0012] 2. This application optimizes the photon relay transmission mechanism by configuring a multi-layer gradient structure and doping it with light-emitting centers in the light-emitting unit, combined with a spectral coupling layer. The gradient structure forms hierarchical absorption for particles at different penetration depths, and the doped centers guide the directional migration of charge carriers to reduce non-radiative recombination dissipation. The spectral coupling layer filters out invalid wavelengths and smooths the refractive index step, enabling precise matching of the output spectrum with the absorption edge of the photovoltaic semiconductor, significantly improving the final photon collection rate and the system's photoelectric conversion efficiency, and achieving efficient recovery of low-flux radiation energy.

[0013] 3. This application introduces a perovskite luminescent medium as an energy conversion hub, eliminating the direct bombardment of photovoltaic semiconductor junctions by high-energy decay particles. This physical relay mechanism blocks the generation path of lattice defects in the photovoltaic active layer, confining particle collisions to a scintillator with high defect tolerance. Combined with the multilayer composite encapsulation structure's isolation from environmental water and oxygen and its confinement of nuclides, the system significantly improves the material's resistance to physical decay under long-term irradiation conditions, ensuring the long service life and operational stability of nuclear battery devices in extreme environments. Attached Figure Description

[0014] Figure 1 This is a three-dimensional perspective cross-sectional view of this application; Figure 2This is a two-dimensional planar layered stacking diagram of this application; Figure 3 This is a supplementary schematic diagram illustrating the mechanism and structure of the photovoltaic-nuclear energy coupled battery in this application. Detailed Implementation

[0015] The technical solutions in the embodiments of this application will be clearly and completely described below with reference to the accompanying drawings. Obviously, the described embodiments are only some embodiments of this application, and not all embodiments. Based on the embodiments of this application, all other embodiments obtained by those skilled in the art without creative effort are within the scope of protection of this application.

[0016] Please see the appendix Figure 1 - Appendix Figure 3 This application provides a photovoltaic-nuclear energy coupled battery, suitable for scenarios such as miniature long-life power supplies, independent power supply systems for extreme environments, low-grade energy recovery devices from nuclear waste, self-powered sensors, and long-term unattended low-power devices. The photovoltaic-nuclear energy coupled battery generally includes: A radioactive radiation source unit is used to provide a continuous and stable decay energy input, in which radioactive nuclides decay and release high-energy particles. The radiation-excited luminescent unit, composed of perovskite scintillator material or perovskite-based composite luminescent material, is used to convert the energy of decay particles released by the radioactive radiation source unit into light radiation within a specific wavelength range. Photon modulation and energy coupling unit is used to improve light collection efficiency, suppress light loss and optimize spectral matching; A photovoltaic conversion unit is disposed on the light-emitting side of the radiation-excited light-emitting unit or surrounding it. Its absorption spectrum matches the wavelength of the light radiation and is used to absorb the light radiation and generate electron-hole separation. An electrical output unit, electrically connected to the photovoltaic conversion unit, is used to collect photogenerated charges and complete external load connection and power output. The encapsulated shielding unit covers the outside of the above-mentioned units and is used to achieve nuclide fixation, radiation shielding, environmental isolation, and long-term structural support.

[0017] Depending on different power density and size requirements, the above units can be combined in the form of layered stacking, sandwich nesting, microstructure array, particle composite or integrated coating.

[0018] The overall multi-stage energy conversion process of this photovoltaic-nuclear coupled battery, from "radiant energy to light energy to electrical energy," is as follows: Step S10: The radioactive nuclides within the radioactive radiation source unit continue to undergo spontaneous decay within their half-life, releasing high-energy particles; Step S20: High-energy particles deposit energy in the surrounding radiation-excited luminescent units, exciting excited-state charge carriers to be generated inside the perovskite material. The charge carriers release characteristic emission light through radiative recombination. Step S30: Under the action of the photon modulation and energy coupling unit, the characteristic emitted light enters the photovoltaic conversion unit after directional transmission or reflection enhancement; Step S40: The photovoltaic conversion unit absorbs the emitted photons to generate electron-hole separation, and then the carriers are collected by the transparent conductive electrode and the metal current collector electrode of the power output unit to output stable DC power to the outside.

[0019] The radioactive source unit, serving as the primary energy supply structure of a nuclear battery system, continuously provides energy input through the spontaneous decay of its internal radioactive nuclides. These radioactive nuclides are isotopic materials with long half-lives, controllable activity, and moderate particle energies. Specifically, the radioactive nuclides are selected from actinides, beta-source nuclides, or low-grade radioactive components recovered from nuclear waste, releasing high-energy particles such as alpha particles, beta particles, or secondary electrons during their decay process.

[0020] To balance energy utilization efficiency and device structural safety, the radionuclides within the radioactive radiation source unit are immobilized in a non-exposed form. Specific immobilization methods include nano-confined coating, inorganic shell encapsulation, microcapsule immobilization, porous matrix adsorption, or lattice embedding. These immobilization structures stably confine the radionuclides within a predetermined spatial region, preventing physical migration, leakage, or localized accumulation of the nuclides within the material, thereby maintaining the stable release of high-energy particles within the local space.

[0021] Furthermore, when using an inorganic shell encapsulation method, the radioactive nuclide is encapsulated in a dense inorganic oxide material such as silicon dioxide, alumina, or zirconium oxide. The nuclide in the core and the outer inorganic material together constitute micron- or nano-sized core-shell structured particles. This inorganic shell has a dual function: firstly, it prevents direct chemical contact between the core radioactive nuclide and the outer luminescent substrate, reducing the risk of chemical reactions and the probability of lattice damage; secondly, it is used to control the emission direction and energy dissipation mode of high-energy particles, making them more suitable for energy deposition in adjacent luminescent materials.

[0022] In terms of the overall spatial layout of the system, the radioactive radiation source unit is designed to match the physical range of the decaying particles, the energy deposition depth, and the thickness of the outer luminescent layer. Specifically, it includes the following spatial arrangements: In the first arrangement, the immobilized radionuclides are uniformly dispersed within the luminescent material matrix of the radiation-excited luminescent unit; in the second arrangement, the radionuclides are embedded in the luminescent material matrix as distributed point sources; in the third arrangement, the radionuclides form independent layered structures and are arranged in a sandwich configuration between the radiation-excited luminescent unit and the back reflector layer. These spatial designs effectively shorten the particle transport path and establish a reasonable spatial coupling relationship between the radiation source and the luminescent structure.

[0023] The radiation-excited luminescent unit is disposed around the periphery of the radioactive radiation source unit or forms a composite structure with it. The core luminescent medium of this unit is composed of perovskite scintillator material or perovskite-based composite luminescent material. When bombarded by alpha particles, beta particles, or secondary electrons released from the decay of the radioactive nuclide, the luminescent medium can rapidly absorb the energy carried by these high-energy particles and generate electron-hole pairs or excitons within the material; these excited-state charge carriers release fluorescence or scintillator light through a radiative recombination process, thereby realizing the conversion of nuclear radiation energy into light energy.

[0024] Specifically, the perovskite luminescent material is selected from halide perovskites, double perovskites, low-dimensional perovskites, or lead-free perovskite systems. Perovskite materials not only possess advantages such as high luminous efficiency, tunable emission wavelength, high defect tolerance, and good interface compatibility with photovoltaic devices, but also have the advantage of low-temperature fabrication. In practical applications, by adjusting the halogen composition, replacing A / B site ions, regulating lattice strain, or modifying surface ligands, the emission wavelength, luminescence intensity, and irradiation stability of the aforementioned luminescent material can be synergistically optimized. This modulation process ensures precise matching between the main emission band of the luminescent unit and the optical absorption edge of the subsequent photovoltaic conversion unit, thereby effectively reducing photon energy loss caused by spectral mismatch.

[0025] Preferably, to further improve the luminescence efficiency of the luminescent material under high-energy particle excitation, the perovskite scintillator matrix is ​​doped with rare-earth ions, transition metal luminescent centers, or energy-sensitizing components. By introducing rare-earth elements with characteristic luminescence energy levels into the perovskite lattice, the electron-hole pairs generated by high-energy particle excitation can be more efficiently migrated to the luminescent centers within the material. This doped structure optimizes the radiative recombination path of excited-state carriers, reduces non-radiative recombination losses, thereby improving the quantum yield of scintillation luminescence, extending the effective luminescence lifetime, and enhancing the structural stability of the material under continuous irradiation conditions.

[0026] To address the aging and damage issues under long-term service conditions, the perovskite luminescent material within the radiation-excited luminescence unit further incorporates low-dimensional structures, inorganic framework reinforcement components, surface passivators, or cross-linked polymer coating layers. This structural design and component addition effectively suppress ion migration within the perovskite material, significantly enhancing the luminescent medium's resistance to radiation decay and environmental aging, thus ensuring the long-term luminescence retention rate of the radiation-excited luminescence unit under continuous high-flux particle bombardment or low-grade radiation environments.

[0027] To improve the collection efficiency of emitted photons and suppress light loss, a photon modulation and energy coupling unit is provided at the optical interface between the radiatively excited luminescence unit and the photovoltaic conversion unit, as well as on the non-light-emitting side of the radiatively excited luminescence unit. This unit is used to guide the directional propagation of fluorescence or scintillation light generated by the luminescent medium, match its refractive index, and optimize its spectrum to reduce the escape of photons into ineffective directions.

[0028] For the side of the radiation-excited light-emitting unit facing away from the photovoltaic conversion direction, a back-reflection layer or a photon recovery layer is provided inside the photon modulation and energy coupling unit. The back-reflection layer is constructed using a high-reflectivity metal thin film, a dielectric multilayer film, or a Bragg reflection structure. This reflection structure can reflect photons emitted towards the back back back to the photovoltaic conversion direction on the front side, thereby effectively improving the utilization rate of bidirectional light emission.

[0029] At the interface between the radiation-excited luminescence unit and the photovoltaic conversion unit, the photon modulation and energy coupling unit is configured with a refractive index matching layer, a transparent optical coupling layer, or a spectral coupling layer. On one hand, the transparent optical coupling layer can be prepared using transparent inorganic oxides, transparent polymers, low-loss optical adhesives, or nanocomposite transparent layers, simultaneously satisfying high visible light transmittance and low irradiation aging sensitivity. By matching the refractive index parameters between the luminescence layer and the photovoltaic layer, this coupling layer achieves a smooth transition of the refractive index step, significantly reducing Fresnel reflection loss at the interface. On the other hand, for luminescence layers with a broad spectral distribution, a spectral coupling layer with selective transmission or wavelength modulation functions can be provided at this location to filter out wavelengths unfavorable to photovoltaic absorption and optimize the effective spectral composition entering the photovoltaic layer.

[0030] To further enhance the coupling probability of specific wavelength light radiation within the photovoltaic absorption band, the photon modulation and energy coupling unit also includes a microcavity resonant structure, a waveguide layer, a scattering enhancement layer, and surface micro / nano textures or subwavelength textures disposed in the interface region. These microscopic optical structures effectively prolong the residence time of light radiation within the effective absorption region by enhancing the local electromagnetic field strength or increasing the scattering path of incident photons at the interface, thereby improving the overall photoelectric conversion efficiency of the system.

[0031] The photovoltaic conversion unit is disposed on the main light-emitting side of the radiatively excited luminescent unit, or on the outer side of the radiatively excited luminescent unit in terms of spatial geometry. This unit absorbs specific wavelength light radiation generated by the luminescent medium and produces electron-hole separation, thereby converting light energy into electrical energy. Compared with the traditional nuclear battery configuration where radioactive particles directly bombard the semiconductor junction region, this application relies on an intermediate photon conversion process to achieve energy coupling, avoiding direct irradiation damage to the photovoltaic active layer by high-energy particles, thus significantly reducing device aging due to radiation and improving long-term lifespan.

[0032] Specifically, the photovoltaic conversion unit is selected from perovskite photovoltaic devices, silicon-based micro-photovoltaic units, III-V high-response micro-cells, organic / inorganic heterojunction photovoltaic devices, or other photoelectric conversion devices with high quantum response to the target emission band. In terms of spectral matching design, the absorption edge and external quantum efficiency peak of the photovoltaic material must match the main emission band of the radiatively excited emission unit. For example, when the scintillator mainly emits visible light or near-ultraviolet light, a wide bandgap or high visible response photovoltaic material is preferred; when the emission band is biased towards red light or the near-infrared region, a narrow bandgap or high near-infrared response photovoltaic material is preferred, thereby improving photon utilization.

[0033] To increase the total photon capture within a limited space, the photovoltaic conversion unit can be configured as an enclosed or semi-enclosed structure, enabling it to collect photons emitted from the front while simultaneously collecting photons emitted from the side.

[0034] The electrical output unit is electrically connected to the photovoltaic conversion unit and is used to export the photogenerated charge generated in the photovoltaic layer for use by an external load. The electrical output unit sequentially includes a carrier selection layer, a transparent conductive layer, a metal bus electrode, and an external lead structure. The carrier selection layer reduces charge recombination losses at the heterogeneous interface and improves charge extraction efficiency; the transparent conductive layer enables lateral current conduction while ensuring high photon transmittance; the metal bus electrode typically employs a patterned structure, such as a mesh or strip, designed to minimize light shading, and is used to stably collect the dispersed current to the external interface.

[0035] In terms of power output mode, if the power consumption demand of the external load is low, the continuous and stable DC power output by the power output unit can be directly used to drive low-power electronic components; if the external load has intermittent peak power demand, the external interface of the power output unit is further connected to a voltage regulator circuit or a micro energy storage unit (such as a micro supercapacitor or thin-film battery). The energy storage unit first buffers and accumulates power, and then outputs power to the external load in a pulsed or periodic power supply mode. To ensure the long-term safe and stable operation of the device, the encapsulation and shielding unit covers the periphery of the internal structures, including the radioactive radiation source unit, the radiation-induced light emission unit, and the photovoltaic conversion unit. This encapsulation and shielding unit serves both to effectively confine and shield the internal radioactive nuclides from radiation, and to protect the perovskite material from environmental impact while providing structural stability support for the photovoltaic device.

[0036] Specifically, the encapsulation and shielding unit adopts a multi-layer composite encapsulation structure, which includes, from the inside out, the following layers in spatial distribution: a nuclide fixing layer, a radiation localization shielding layer, a functional protection layer, a water and oxygen barrier layer, a mechanical support layer, and an external safety housing.

[0037] The nuclide immobilization layer is used to stably lock radioactive components within a preset spatial region; the radiation localization shielding layer is used to suppress the escape of radioactive particles from non-target directions, thereby reducing the radiation leakage dose around the device; the functional protection layer is mainly used to isolate ion migration, inhibit the degradation of luminescent materials, and protect the photovoltaic interface; the water and oxygen barrier layer is used to prevent the internal perovskite luminescent materials, which are sensitive to the environment, from becoming damp, oxidized, or unstable over a long period; and the mechanical support layer and the external safety housing are used together to maintain the structural strength and sealing integrity of the overall device.

[0038] Regarding the preferred packaging materials, the materials for each layer of the multilayer composite packaging structure can be alumina, silicon nitride, silicon dioxide, glass ceramics, metal shells, high-barrier polymer films, or multilayer inorganic and organic alternating barrier films. These materials possess high chemical stability, high barrier properties, and low radiation damage sensitivity, effectively coping with long-term irradiation and complex environments, synergistically improving the overall safety and service life of the device.

[0039] Example 1: This embodiment provides a coalescing energy converter photovoltaic-nuclear energy coupled battery. Referring to the cross-sectional structure shown in the accompanying drawings, the photovoltaic-nuclear energy coupled battery, in its physical stacked architecture, sequentially includes, from bottom to top, a substrate support layer, a back reflective layer, a coalescing radiative emission layer, an optical coupling layer, a photovoltaic conversion layer, a transparent electrode layer, a metal current collector electrode, and an encapsulation shielding layer surrounding the device.

[0040] Specifically, the bottommost substrate support layer is made of insulating materials such as quartz glass, sapphire substrate, or alumina ceramic substrate, possessing high mechanical stability and low radiation damage sensitivity, and is used to provide structural support for the energy conversion functional layers above. A back reflection layer is stacked on the upper surface of the substrate support layer, forming the bottom optical reflective surface, used to reflect scintillation light emitted away from the photovoltaic conversion direction back to the upper photovoltaic absorption direction.

[0041] Above the back reflector layer is the coalescing radiative emission layer, which is the core energy conversion region of this embodiment. As shown in the accompanying drawings, this layer contains radioactive nuclide functional particles and a perovskite scintillation light-emitting matrix. On the light-emitting surface of the coalescing radiative emission layer, the optical coupling layer and the photovoltaic conversion layer are sequentially stacked; the photovoltaic conversion layer receives light radiation emitted from the light-emitting matrix below and generates photogenerated charge carriers, which are then collected and externally output as electrical energy through a transparent electrode layer and a metal current collector electrode disposed above it.

[0042] In this embodiment, the core technical feature of the aggregated configuration lies in the construction of a high-density, tightly coupled structure at the molecular, nanoscale, or near-field scale. The radionuclides are coated with a stable inorganic shell to form micron- or nanoscale functional particles. These functional particles do not exist as independent macroscopic thin film layers, but are uniformly and diffusely embedded into the perovskite scintillator matrix according to a predetermined spatial distribution.

[0043] The aforementioned spatial aggregation structure significantly shortens the physical transport distance between the radionuclide and the luminescent center. When the radionuclide particles continuously release decay particles, due to their extremely close near-field coupling with the perovskite scintillator matrix, the decay particles can directly enter the surrounding scintillator medium within their limited physical range, resulting in localized energy deposition. As shown in the energy transfer path diagram, the system sequentially completes the physical process of converting nuclear decay particles into scintillator photons, and then into photovoltaic current.

[0044] This near-field coupling structure enables decaying particles to complete energy deposition and luminescence excitation within an extremely short transmission distance, preventing high-energy particles from traversing thicker external inert layers or air gaps. This significantly reduces scattering losses and thermal dissipation in ineffective regions. Simultaneously, this configuration strictly confines structural damage caused by high-energy particles within the scintillator substrate region, avoiding direct damage to the photovoltaic active layer. Therefore, while improving the effective utilization of local radiative energy, it also ensures the overall lifespan of the device.

[0045] This application further elaborates on the physical hierarchy, fabrication logic, and energy transmission path of the aforementioned coalescing energy converter photovoltaic nuclear energy coupled cell.

[0046] In terms of physical layer stacking and fabrication logic, this embodiment adopts a bottom-up, layer-by-layer growth assembly structure. Specifically, a back reflective layer and a coalesced radiative emission layer are sequentially deposited above a substrate support layer that provides initial support. The coalesced radiative emission layer is formed through a co-assembly process, in which core-shell structured micro / nano particles, pre-coated with inorganic materials, are uniformly dispersed at a predetermined concentration into the precursor system of the perovskite scintillation luminescent material. Subsequently, a film-forming, curing, or crystallization process is performed above the back reflective layer to stably embed the micro / nano particles within the perovskite luminescent matrix, thereby forming a high-density near-field coalesced spatial structure at the microscale of the material.

[0047] After the coalesced radiative luminescence layer is cured, an optical coupling layer is deposited on its upper surface, and a photovoltaic conversion unit is fabricated on top of the optical coupling layer. Subsequently, a transparent electrode layer and a patterned metal current collector electrode are sequentially fabricated on the light-emitting side of the photovoltaic conversion unit. Finally, an encapsulation shielding unit is used to completely cover and seal the above multilayer composite structure.

[0048] Based on the aforementioned micro-nano scale aggregation and arrangement, this embodiment forms an energy transport path with short-range characteristics. In operation, the radionuclides embedded within the luminescent medium continuously undergo spontaneous decay. Because the nuclide particles are directly dispersed within the perovskite luminescent matrix, the released high-energy particles do not need to cross external inert insulating media or physical gaps; they directly enter the adjacent perovskite medium within an extremely short physical range to undergo localized energy deposition.

[0049] The perovskite luminescent substrate absorbs deposited energy to generate excited-state charge carriers, which then release scintillation light of a characteristic wavelength through radiative recombination. The scintillation light emitted towards the back is reflected back by the bottom back reflection layer and, together with the scintillation light emitted towards the front, passes through the optical coupling layer and enters the photovoltaic conversion unit above. The photovoltaic conversion unit absorbs these photons and generates photogenerated charge carriers. After electron-hole separation is achieved internally, the carriers are collected by the transparent electrode layer and the metal current collector electrode and output stable DC power to the outside.

[0050] The configuration of this embodiment produces a series of beneficial technical effects. On the one hand, the coalesced composite structure significantly shortens the transport path of decaying particles from release to deposition, effectively reducing the scattering dissipation and ineffective absorption loss of high-energy particles when crossing multilayer interfaces, enabling most decaying particles to be converted into excitation photons, and its energy conversion efficiency is significantly improved compared with the traditional layered stacked nuclear battery structure. On the other hand, this near-field coupling configuration confines the physical collisions and lattice damage caused by high-energy particles to the perovskite scintillator region, avoiding direct radiation damage to the photovoltaic active layer, improving the efficiency of radiation energy utilization while ensuring the long-term electrical stability and service life of the device.

[0051] Example 2: This embodiment provides a self-luminescent perovskite scintillator-type photovoltaic-nuclear energy coupled battery. In its overall physical architecture, the photovoltaic-nuclear energy coupled battery sequentially includes a radioactive radiation source unit, a radiation-excited luminescence unit, a photon modulation and energy coupling unit, a photovoltaic conversion unit, an electrical output unit, and an encapsulation and shielding unit surrounding the battery. Unlike the micro-nano scale aggregated structure of nuclides and luminescent materials in Embodiment 1, this embodiment emphasizes integrating the excitation process of radioactive particles and the luminescence function itself into the same luminescent material system.

[0052] Specifically, in this embodiment, the radiation-excited luminescence unit employs a macroscopically independent self-luminous perovskite scintillator layer. Functionally, this configuration essentially integrates a self-luminous radiation excitation source and photovoltaic collection functions. When subjected to continuous radiation from radioactive decay particles, the self-luminous perovskite scintillator layer can stably output a luminous signal within a specific wavelength range, which is then collected and output as electricity by the adjacent photovoltaic conversion unit.

[0053] The advantages of this self-luminous configuration lie in its relatively clear structure, high degree of freedom in material design, and the ability to flexibly optimize spectral matching for different wavelengths. This battery requires no external sunlight, no external power supply, and no moving mechanical parts, enabling it to stably output low-power electrical energy over a relatively long timescale. It is particularly suitable for micro-power systems requiring low power, long lifespan, and stable output, as well as for the recovery of low-grade radiation energy from nuclear waste.

[0054] In terms of specific spatial arrangement and excitation structure design, the radioactive radiation source unit in this embodiment can be arranged on the back side, inside, or both sides of the self-luminous perovskite scintillator layer, thereby realizing single-sided excitation, volumetric excitation, or double-sided excitation of the luminescent layer, respectively. To improve the uniformity of the overall luminescent surface and reduce the ineffective dissipation of radioactive particles, the radioactive radiation source unit adopts a thin-layer distributed structure or a micro-array distributed structure.

[0055] In actual assembly, the radioactive nuclide is fixed to the device's built-in support layer or specific functional cavity using a stable mounting process. This avoids the physical migration and local accumulation of the nuclide during long-term operation, allowing the high-energy particles released from decay to act more uniformly across the entire luminescent layer. Furthermore, a locally oriented shielding layer is provided between the radiation source and the external support structure facing away from the luminescent layer. This locally oriented shielding layer guides the radiation particles primarily towards the scintillator, restricting the diffusion of high-energy particles into non-working areas, thereby significantly improving the effective excitation efficiency of the luminescent unit by decay particles.

[0056] In the thickness direction, the self-luminescent perovskite scintillator layer in this embodiment adopts a multi-layered gradient light-emitting structure. This multi-layered structure achieves hierarchical absorption and luminescence utilization of particles of different energies or deposited energy at different depths by setting perovskite sublayers with different compositions, different band gaps, or different emission centers.

[0057] In terms of specific layer arrangement, a perovskite scintillator sublayer with strong radiation resistance and high particle absorption capacity is placed on the side closer to the radioactive radiation source unit; while a perovskite output sublayer with high luminescence quantum efficiency and whose emission spectrum better matches the absorption edge of the photovoltaic device is placed on the side closer to the photovoltaic conversion unit. This structure takes into account both the radiation resistance requirements at the front end and the high-efficiency photon output requirements at the back end.

[0058] Furthermore, a spectral coupling layer is provided at the optical interface between the self-luminous perovskite scintillator layer and the photovoltaic conversion unit. When the light emitted by the scintillator has a broad spectral distribution or some wavelengths are unfavorable for photovoltaic absorption, the spectral coupling layer optimizes the effective spectral composition entering the photovoltaic conversion unit through selective transmission or wavelength modulation, thereby significantly reducing the spectral matching loss at the interface.

[0059] This embodiment is particularly suitable for scenarios involving the recovery of low-grade radiation energy from nuclear waste. In this scenario, since the radiation source typically has low flux and low thermal power, the self-luminescent perovskite scintillator layer is preferably doped with rare earth elements or other luminescent centers. Under the excitation of low-power decaying particles, this doping design enables electron-hole pairs generated within the material to migrate more efficiently to the luminescent centers, effectively reducing non-radiative recombination losses, thereby maintaining stable fluorescence output even under low-flux radiation conditions.

[0060] In the complete working mechanism of nuclear waste energy recovery, the system avoids direct bombardment of the photovoltaic active layer by low-grade decay particles through the photon conversion process of an intermediate scintillator. This mechanism effectively mitigates lattice defects and radiation damage caused by high-energy particles, enabling the photoelectric conversion device to operate stably for a long time within a safe threshold. Experimental data show that the self-luminescent perovskite scintillator using this doping system can achieve a photoelectric conversion efficiency of greater than 10% in low-power nuclear waste decay scenarios.

[0061] Meanwhile, the self-luminescent perovskite scintillator and multi-layer shielding structure exhibit excellent radiation stability against α, β, and γ decay particles released from nuclear waste. After 5000 hours of continuous operation, the overall electrical performance degradation of the system is less than 5%, fully meeting the engineering requirements of long lifespan, high energy utilization, and long-term reliable power supply in extreme environments in the field of nuclear energy micro-power supplies.

[0062] In addition to the aforementioned single-cell structure, this application can also combine multiple single photovoltaic-nuclear coupled cells to form an array-type nuclear micro-power module. In the array-type nuclear micro-power module, multiple single cells are electrically connected in series, parallel, or mixed connection. Specifically, the series structure is used to increase the overall output voltage of the module; the parallel structure is used to increase the total output current; and the mixed connection structure takes into account both the needs of voltage boost and current expansion.

[0063] Furthermore, multiple individual photovoltaic-nuclear coupled cells can be designed in a gradient manner according to different nuclide activities, different emission bands, or different photovoltaic response ranges. This gradient array structure constitutes a multi-level energy utilization system, thereby forming an electrical output platform with a wider adaptability range.

[0064] Based on the aforementioned array structure, the photovoltaic-nuclear coupled battery of this application is particularly suitable for independent power supply systems in extreme environments. Specific applications include long-term deployed monitoring equipment, deep-sea or polar exploration nodes, low-power aerospace electronic devices, and miniature autonomous sensing systems within nuclear environments. In these scenarios, the device can achieve stable power output over long periods without external illumination or frequent maintenance.

[0065] Furthermore, as mentioned earlier in the section on electrical output units, in practical application scenarios, if there are intermittent peaks in external load demand, this application can first buffer and store the continuous DC power output by the photovoltaic conversion unit by connecting a micro energy storage unit such as a micro supercapacitor or thin-film battery to the output end, and then release the power to the external load in a pulsed or periodic power supply mode, thereby meeting the transient high-power power supply requirements of low-power devices.

[0066] Although embodiments of this application have been shown and described, it will be understood by those skilled in the art that various changes, modifications, substitutions and variations can be made to these embodiments without departing from the principles and spirit of this application, the scope of which is defined by the appended claims and their equivalents.

Claims

1. A photovoltaic-nuclear energy coupled battery, characterized in that, include: The substrate support layer, back reflective layer, coalescing radiative emission layer, optical coupling layer, photovoltaic conversion layer, transparent conductive layer, metal current collector electrode, and encapsulation shielding layer; The back reflective layer is disposed on the substrate support layer; The coalescing type radiation-excited light-emitting layer is disposed on the back reflective layer; The optical coupling layer is disposed between the coalesced radiative emission layer and the photovoltaic conversion layer; The transparent conductive layer and the metal current collector electrode are disposed on the light-emitting side of the photovoltaic conversion layer; The encapsulation shielding layer covers the back reflection layer, the coalescing radiative emission layer, the optical coupling layer, the photovoltaic conversion layer, the transparent conductive layer, and the periphery of the metal current collector electrode; The aggregated radiation-excited luminescent layer includes a perovskite scintillation matrix and radionuclide functional particles dispersed within the perovskite scintillation matrix. The radionuclide functional particle includes a radionuclide core and an inorganic coating layer covering the outside of the radionuclide core; The high-energy particles released from the radioactive nuclide core directly enter the perovskite scintillation matrix within the physical range to perform local energy deposition and excite the perovskite scintillation matrix to generate light radiation. The photovoltaic conversion layer is used to absorb the light radiation and output electrical energy.

2. The photovoltaic-nuclear energy coupled battery according to claim 1, characterized in that: The particle size of the radionuclide functional particles is 5 nm to 10 μm.

3. A photovoltaic-nuclear energy coupled battery according to claim 1, characterized in that: The thickness of the inorganic coating layer is 1 nm to 500 nm.

4. A photovoltaic-nuclear energy coupled battery according to claim 1, characterized in that: The inorganic coating layer is made of one or more of silicon dioxide, aluminum oxide, zirconium oxide, or silicon nitride.

5. A photovoltaic-nuclear coupled battery according to claim 1, characterized in that: The average spacing between the radionuclide functional particles in the perovskite scintillation matrix is ​​less than the average physical range of the high-energy particles.

6. A photovoltaic-nuclear energy coupled battery according to claim 1, characterized in that: The perovskite scintillation matrix is ​​one or more of halide perovskite, double perovskite, low-dimensional perovskite, or lead-free perovskite.

7. A photovoltaic-nuclear energy coupled battery according to claim 1, characterized in that: The perovskite scintillation matrix is ​​doped with rare earth ions, transition metal luminescent centers, or energy-sensitizing components.

8. A photovoltaic-nuclear coupled battery according to claim 1, characterized in that: The back reflective layer can be a metal reflective layer, a dielectric multilayer reflective layer, or a Bragg reflective layer.

9. A photovoltaic-nuclear energy coupled battery according to claim 1, characterized in that: The optical coupling layer is made of a transparent inorganic oxide layer, a transparent polymer layer, an optical adhesive layer, or a nanocomposite transparent layer. The refractive index of the optical coupling layer is between that of the coalescing radiative emission layer and the photovoltaic conversion layer.

10. A photovoltaic-nuclear coupled battery according to claim 1, characterized in that: The encapsulation shielding layer comprises, from the inside out, a nuclide fixing layer, a radiation shielding layer, a water and oxygen barrier layer, and a mechanical support layer.

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