Destroy-on-demand electrical device using oxidizable germanium substrate
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing electronic devices deployed in remote or distributed locations, such as battlefields or clinical applications, are difficult to recover or destroy efficiently, as existing self-vanishing technologies often result in diminished performance or require infeasible methods like force, heat, or electrical discharge.
Innovation Solution
A destroy-on-demand electrical device featuring a substrate made from dissolvable materials, integrated with an electrical circuit and a disintegration agent source, which includes oxidizing agents like hydrogen peroxide or salts to trigger self-destruction upon contact, allowing for controlled and rapid dissolution or oxidation of the device.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If traditional self-vanishing electronic technologies are used, then the device can be destroyed after use, but the performance is diminished
Solution Approach 1:
The patent changes the chemical composition parameters of the substrate from traditional materials to Germanium-based materials that can be selectively oxidized. By controlling the oxidation state and using specific disintegration agents, the device maintains high performance during operation and then rapidly disintegrates when needed, resolving the contradiction between performance and controlled destruction capability
Solution Approach 2:
The device incorporates disintegration agents and oxidizing agents in advance within sealed capsules or compartments. When destruction is required, these pre-positioned agents are released to rapidly oxidize the Germanium substrate, enabling controlled self-destruction without compromising the device's operational performance during its service life
2Adaptability or versatility
If force, heat, or electrical discharge is used to destroy the device, then the device can be destroyed, but these methods are not feasible for all applications
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces mechanical destruction methods (force, heat, electrical discharge) with a chemical dissolution mechanism. The Germanium-based substrate dissolves through chemical reaction with disintegration agents, providing a gentle yet effective destruction method that is feasible for all applications including sensitive clinical and biological environments where mechanical or thermal methods would be inappropriate
Solution Approach 2:
By changing the substrate material to Germanium-based materials with specific chemical properties, the device enables controlled chemical dissolution as a universal destruction method. This chemical parameter change allows the same destruction mechanism to work across diverse applications without requiring application-specific destruction methodologies
3Ease of operation
If the device is placed in remote locations, then it can be deployed for various applications, but it becomes difficult to recover
Solution Approach 1:
The device incorporates self-destruction capability through integrated disintegration agents and Germanium-based substrates. When recovery is not feasible or when the device has completed its mission, the device automatically or remotely triggers its own dissolution, eliminating the need for manual recovery operations in remote or inaccessible locations
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
Enables the creation of high-performance electronic devices that can self-destruct in a controlled, rapid, and triggered manner without leaving behind harmful residues, suitable for various applications including defense and clinical uses.
Implementation Method 1
an oxidizing agent source contains one or more oxidization agents that oxidize the Germanium-based substrate upon coming in contact with the substrate, thereby destroying the electrical device
Data Source
AI summary
A destroy on-demand electrical device includes a substrate layer formed using a soluble material (e.g., a Germanium oxide), a semi-conductor layer formed from a material that can become soluble upon further processing (e.g., Germanium) and conductive elements, formed from a metallic material such as Copper. The device is coupled with one or more disintegration sources that contain disintegration agents (e.g., Hydrogen Peroxide) that can promote disintegration of the device. The device can be destroyed in response to actuation of the disintegration sources, for example by actuation of a source that produces Hydrogen Peroxide for use in oxidizing the semi-conductor layer. Water can be used to dissolve dissolvable substrate layers. The semi-conductor layer can be destroyed by first processing this layer to form a dissolvable material and dissolving the processed layer with water. The remaining Copper components disintegrate once their underlying layer have been dissolved and/or by use of a salt.