TRITIATED AMORPHOUS-SILICON FOR MICROPOWER APPLICATIONS

The application of tritiated amorphous silicon as an intrinsic energy conversion semiconductor for radioluminescent structures and betavolta ic devices is presented. Theoretical analysis of the betavoltaic appli cation shows an overall efficiency of 18 % for tritiated amorphous sil icon. This is equivalent to a 330 Ci intrinsic betavoltaic device prod ucing I mW of power for 12 years. Photoluminescence studies of hydroge nated amorphous silicon, a-Si:H, show emission in the infra-red with a maximum quantum efficiency of 7.2% at 50 K; this value drops by 3 ord ers of magnitude at a temperature of 300 K. Similar studies of hydroge nated amorphous carbon show emission in the visible with an estimated quantum efficiency of 1 % at 300 K. These results suggest that tritiat ed amorphous carbon may be the more promising candidate for room tempe rature radioluminescence in the visible.