This proposal seeks to develop a transformative energy system β the plasmon-enhanced radioisotope Thermophotovoltaic generator β that significantly surpasses the performance of current radioisotope thermoelectric generators in both specific power and efficiency.
Designed to achieve a specific power of 17 W/kg and a thermal-to-electric conversion efficiency greater than 40%, the PRTPV offers a sevenfold improvement in efficiency and nearly an order-of-magnitude increase in specific power compared to state-of-the-art RTGs.
The system combines two novel innovations: the use of a high-refractive-index, low infrared loss, low-thermal-conductivity, and high-melting point material to replace the traditional vacuum gap between the heat source and photovoltaic cell, enhancing thermal radiation power density proportional to the square of the refractive index, and the integration of a multilayered photonic crystal plasmon coupler to spectrally tune the thermal radiation by exciting surface plasmons at the coupler-PV cell interface matching with the PV cellβs bandgap, further improving conversion efficiency.
Together, these advances overcome the low power density that limits current TPV systems.
The resulting technology is compact, efficient, and scalable, opening the door to new classes of NASA missions, including long-duration surface operations in permanently shadowed lunar regions and interstellar missions where solar power is impractical.
The proposed work directly supports NASAβs long-term goals in space exploration and energy innovation.
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