The next step in smartphone battery tech – nuclear power!

Our smartphone batteries these days last us about a day, maybe two at most. There are some rare instances of phones packing some insane batteries, but those are the outliers. Recently Chinese startup Betavolt Technology have unveiled a new battery that is powered by nuclear technology.

The concept of nuclear power has been around for decades, but to see it miniaturized into consumer tech is amazing. The company claims to have managed to miniaturize 63 nuclear isotopes into a module that’s smaller than a coin!

With this amount of energy, the battery can produce as much as 100 microwatts of power and a voltage of 3V. The company estimates that its nuclear battery technology could in theory allow it to generate enough energy for 50 years without charging.

You might be concerned about the safety of nuclear technology sitting in your pocket, and rightfully so. According to Betavolt, the battery uses a layered design that will protect it from fire and explosions from sudden forces, like being dropped. It also has operating temperatures ranging from -60C to 120C.

On paper all of this sounds pretty exciting. Whether or not we will actually see this technology commercialized and used in our day-to-day gadgets is a different story.