Investigation on a radiation tolerant betavoltaic battery based on Schottky barrier diode

An Au–Si Schottky barrier diode was studied as the energy conversion device of betavoltaic batteries. Its electrical performance under radiation of Ni-63 and H-3 sources and radiation degradation under Am-241 were investigated and compared with those of the p–n junction. The results show that the Schottky diode had a higher Isc and harder radiation tolerance but lower Voc than the p–n junction. The results indicated that the Schottky diode can be a promising candidate for energy conversion of betavoltaic batteries.

► The Schottky diode was used as the converter of the betavoltaic battery.
► The radiation damage of converter was accelerated by using alpha particles.
► The Schottky diode has higher radiation resistance than that of the p–n junction.
► The Schottky diode could still be a promising converter of the betavoltaic battery.