Batteryless Pacemaker Could Use Heart’s Energy for Power

The cardiac pacemaker of the future could be powered by the heart itself, according to researchers in China. Current cardiac pacemakers use a battery power supply and leads to keep hearts beating regularly. Yi Zhiran and his group are investing batteryless powering and leadless pacing, harvesting kinetic energy from the heart to power the lifesaving device. The energy is harvested by the buckling of the encapsulated structure of the pacemaker, creating buckled piezoelectric energy.

Energy Harvesting Goes Organic, Gets More Flexible

The race is on to create natural biocompatible piezoelectric materials for energy harvesting, electronic sensing, and stimulating nerves. Researchers decided to explore peptide-based nanotubes, and in the Journal of Applied Physics, they report using a combination of ultraviolet and ozone exposure to generate a wettability difference and an applied field to create horizontally aligned polarization of nanotubes on flexible substrates with interlocking electrodes. The group’s work will enable the use of organic materials more widely.

Toward an Ultrahigh Energy Density Capacitor

Researchers at Berkeley Lab and UC Berkeley have demonstrated that a common material can be processed into a top-performing energy storage material. Their discovery could improve the efficiency, reliability, and robustness of personal electronics, wearable technologies, and car audio systems.