The research team, led by Dr. Asif Khan, a postdoctoral fellow in the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, has created a compact, wearable generator designed for energy efficiency and scalability for larger machines.
"This is a real game changer," stated Dr. Khan. "We have made the first device of its kind that can power electronics at low cost and with unprecedented efficiency."
The generator employs the piezoelectric effect, which converts mechanical pressure into electrical energy using materials like crystals and certain ceramics. While piezoelectric materials are already used in technologies such as sonar and ultrasonic imaging, the newly developed materials outperform traditional options.
"Those older materials are brittle, expensive and have a limited ability to generate electricity," explained Dr. Dayan Ban, a professor at the Waterloo Institute for Nanotechnology. "The materials we've created for the new generator are flexible, more energy-efficient and cost less."
The research team, which includes additional professors from the University of Waterloo, a University of Toronto professor, and their respective groups, has filed a patent and partnered with a Canadian company to commercialize the technology. Initial applications target aviation systems, where the generator could power devices that monitor the status of safety equipment on planes.
Research Report:Breaking dielectric dilemma via polymer functionalized perovskite piezocomposite with large current density output
