ASCENT: Developing heterogeneous integration of Air-gen technology for the ubiquitous powering of semiconductor systems

About This Grant

The world is becoming more connected through smart devices such as fitness trackers, environmental sensors, and portable gadgets. Finding reliable ways to power them is becoming more important than ever. Today’s batteries do not last forever, can be unpredictable, and often harm the environment when they are thrown away. Other energy sources, like solar or wind, do not always work depending on the weather or location. To tackle these issues, this project aims to develop a new kind of technology termed Air-gen that can generate electricity from something all around us: the moisture in the air. Moisture in the air can carry electricity, as demonstrated by the lightning we see during a thunderstorm. This means that power can be retrieved anytime, anywhere without relying on the sun, wind, or even a battery. Moreover, this research project seeks to make the Air-gen from natural, eco-friendly materials created by microorganisms, using methods that are scalable and compatible with current manufacturing technology. The research also creates educational opportunities through collaborations with a community college and technology translation programs, aiming to engage high school students, college students, and the local community to promote the importance of science and technology. The intellectual merit of this project lies primarily in its conceptual and technological breakthroughs toward a novel form of sustainable energy, with the potential to significantly advance the vision of ubiquitous powering and computing. The broader impacts of this project include applying the developed technologies to clinical settings such as aging and Alzheimer’s care, promoting technology transfer for commercialization, and creating education opportunities to help enhance public awareness of the critical role that science- and technology-driven innovation plays in the development of sustainable solutions. The goal of this research project is to develop wafer-scale, modular integration of Air-gen technology as a universal and ubiquitous powering solution for Internet of Things and wearable devices. The Air-gen is made from a nanoporous thin film with one surface sealed and the other exposed to the air. The asymmetric structure enables charge separation between the two interfaces, driven by interactions with air water molecules in ambient air, thereby generating electricity. To achieve this overarching goal, the project will engineer microorganisms to serve as sustainable bio-factories for producing protein nanowires as the core material used in Air-gen fabrication. Wafer-compatible and scalable integration methods are proposed and investigated to scale up Air-gen power production. These devices are implemented in sleep and environmental monitoring systems to demonstrate their potential as a reliable, self-sustaining power source. This research leverages multidisciplinary expertise, including microbial material engineering, electronic device fabrication, and circuit and system integration. The continued development of Air-gen technology can enable next-generation power solutions for a wide range of systems, including wearable electronics, mobile computing, biomedical devices, and autonomous microsystems. This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.