In a major energy breakthrough, Australian scientists have developed the world’s first proof-of-concept quantum battery.
Researchers led by the Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organization (CSIRO) have developed a next-generation battery prototype that can be charged wirelessly with a laser, marking a major step towards an energy storage future.
Quantum batteries often work on the principles of quantum mechanics to store energy and are more efficient than conventional batteries.
According to Dr. James Quach, lead author of the study and CSIRO researcher, the first prototype is efficient at completing a full battery cycle, meaning that once you charge the battery, you store the energy and can discharge it.
The prototype differs from traditional batteries because traditional batteries take longer to charge.
On the other hand, “quantum batteries have this really weird property where the bigger they are, the less time they take to charge,” Quach said.
The difference in charging capacity is due to a characteristic feature called the “collective effect” in which quantum cells charge faster as the number of cells increases.
Quach and his team first demonstrated this property in 2022, but they were unable to find a way to extract energy from that prototype.
Features of quantum battery
New quantum battery prototype documented in journal Light: Science and Applications Charging took femtoseconds and stored energy for nanoseconds.
According to Quach, if the battery takes 1 minute to charge, six orders of magnitude more will keep it charged for a few years.
With a capacity of only a few billion electron volts, the current prototype is not powerful enough to power anything useful.
“What we need to do next…is to increase storage time. If you want to be able to talk to someone on a mobile phone you want your battery to stay charged for longer than a few nanoseconds.” Quach added.
“Quantum batteries could coherently power quantum computers with minimal energy costs,” said Professor Andrew White, who leads the Quantum Technology Laboratory at the University of Queensland.
