Nanogenerator chip utilizes body movements to produce elecrticity

A research team recently unveiled a nanogenerator at the 241st National Meeting & Exposition of the American Chemical Society. It is a supple chip that utilizes body movements such as a finger pinch to produce electricity.

They described boosting the device’s power output by 1000 times and its voltage by 150 times to finally move it out of the lab and toward everyday life.

This discovery will help develop hand-held electronics fueled only by body movements, removing the need for batteries or electrical inputs, according to Zhong Lin Wang, who led the team.

The development will lead to liquid-crystal displays, laser and light-emitting diodes. A capacitor will save the energy produced, so that the energy output can intermittently impel a sensor and relay the signals wirelessly. It could be applied in personal electronic devices fueled by footsteps triggering the nanogenerator within a shoe sole, embedded insulin pumps fueled by a heart beat, and eco sensors fueled by nanogenerators fluttering in the wind.

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