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By Daniel Strain

Engineers at CU Boulder have debuted the听world鈥檚 most efficient optical rectennas鈥攄evices听that are thinner than the width of a human hair听and can capture waste heat and turn it into听usable power.

The research was led by Amina Belkadi, who听recently earned her PhD from the Department听of Electrical, Computer and Energy Engineering听(ECEE). And it may be a game-changer for the听field of renewable energy. Scientists have long听predicted that optical rectennas could sit on top听of factory smokestacks or even high-altitude听blimps, trapping the energy from heat that would听normally go to waste.

To get closer to that reality, the researchers听tapped into a ghostly property of the quantum听realm called 鈥渞esonant tunneling鈥� that allows听electrons to flow more freely through their device.

鈥淭his innovation makes a significant step toward听making rectennas more practical,鈥� said coauthor听Garret Moddel, professor of ECEE.

Learn more about this topic:

• Scientists debut world鈥檚 most efficient 'optical rectennas,' devices that harvest power from heat