NDB Nuclear Battery Outputs Microwatts Despite EV Power Claims

EEVblog #1333 - Nuclear Diamond Self-Charging Battery DEBUNKED! — EEVblog

EEVblog

The startup's technology generates only 100 microwatts of continuous power, requiring over two years to match a single AAA battery and rendering its smartphone and electric vehicle claims mathematically impossible.

AI-assisted summary of EEVblog #1333 - Nuclear Diamond Self-Charging Battery DEBUNKED! — original source. Check the original for full context.

Source published:

Key ideas

  • Viral marketing claims by startup NDB Inc. touting a self-charging nano diamond battery that could power electric vehicles and smartphones fall apart on a single specification: their own product image rates the cell at just 100 µW. (0:00)
  • At a continuous output of 100 µW, it would take more than two continuous years of energy harvesting to match the 1.8 Wh capacity of a single disposable AAA alkaline battery. (6:09)
  • Commercial betavoltaic devices providing identical ~100 µW output have been sold off-the-shelf for over a decade by companies like City Labs for specialized low-power, long-life niche applications. (3:08)
  • NDB Inc. currently lacks physical prototypes, hardware photographs, or published test data, relying instead on a five-phase roadmap with prototypes not slated until Phase 4. (19:40)

Detailed notes

## Background Published on YouTube by EEVblog (Dave Jones) on August 27, 2020, this video examines the viral marketing claims made by startup NDB Inc. regarding their self-charging nano nuclear diamond battery. The channel description notes that Dave uses the company's own promotional materials to debunk claims of powering electric vehicles and smartphones, concluding that the product is merely an existing 100 µW commercial betavoltaic concept packaged with a graphene supercapacitor.

## TL;DR Dave Jones systematically debunks viral media claims that NDB Inc.'s nuclear diamond batteries will revolutionize energy storage, power smartphones perpetually, or run electric vehicles. By analyzing NDB's own promotional materials—specifically an image of an integrated circuit rated at just 100 microwatts—Dave demonstrates that the technology is fundamentally an energy harvester rather than a high-output power source. Basic arithmetic reveals that a 100 µW generator takes over two years to produce the energy equivalent of a single cheap AAA alkaline cell and more than 2.5 years to self-charge an AA-sized package. Dave points out that commercial betavoltaics from companies like City Labs have existed for over a decade for niche low-drain uses, while NDB's extreme energy density figures, 100% efficiency claims, and buzzword-heavy roadmaps obscure a severe power density bottleneck and a complete absence of working prototypes.

## Atmosphere & style The presentation is energetic, irreverent, and thoroughly grounded in pragmatic engineering skepticism. Dave speaks directly to the camera with characteristic Australian candor, blending quick calculator demonstrations with incredulous sarcasm as he picks apart corporate buzzwords and polished 3D renders. Watching the video feels like an entertaining yet uncompromising reality check, transitioning from exasperation at breathless media hype to methodical, common-sense arithmetic that decisively bursts the startup's bubble.

## Bulletin - [00:00](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uzV_uzSTCTM&t=0s) Viral marketing claims by startup NDB Inc. touting a self-charging nano diamond battery that could power electric vehicles and smartphones fall apart on a single specification: their own product image rates the cell at just 100 µW. - [06:09](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uzV_uzSTCTM&t=369s) At a continuous output of 100 µW, it would take more than two continuous years of energy harvesting to match the 1.8 Wh capacity of a single disposable AAA alkaline battery. - [03:08](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uzV_uzSTCTM&t=188s) Commercial betavoltaic devices providing identical ~100 µW output have been sold off-the-shelf for over a decade by companies like City Labs for specialized low-power, long-life niche applications. - [19:40](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uzV_uzSTCTM&t=1180s) NDB Inc. currently lacks physical prototypes, hardware photographs, or published test data, relying instead on a five-phase roadmap with prototypes not slated until Phase 4.

## Key takeaways - [00:00](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uzV_uzSTCTM&t=0s) Marketing claims that NDB Inc.'s nuclear diamond battery will revolutionize electric vehicles and consumer smartphones rely on recycled hype from earlier university announcements. - [00:00](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uzV_uzSTCTM&t=0s) A photograph of NDB's B7001 betavoltaic package exposes an actual power rating of only 100 µW (0.0001 W), completely debunking claims of high-drain capabilities. - [03:08](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uzV_uzSTCTM&t=188s) Betavoltaics are established technology rather than a novel breakthrough; companies like City Labs have sold tritium-based 100 µW cells for niche applications for over a decade. - [03:08](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uzV_uzSTCTM&t=188s) Claims of being 14.29 times more efficient than space-grade RTGs are mathematically incompatible with a package delivering only microwatt-scale output. - [06:09](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uzV_uzSTCTM&t=369s) Accumulating the ~1.8 Wh energy equivalent of a single AAA alkaline battery requires over two full years of continuous generation from a 100 µW betavoltaic source. - [09:49](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uzV_uzSTCTM&t=589s) The startup pairs a betavoltaic trickle harvester with an integrated graphene supercapacitor, relying on popular tech buzzwords to inflate consumer expectations. - [11:22](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uzV_uzSTCTM&t=682s) Consumer marketing claims of 100% efficiency directly contradict the company's own press release in TechCrunch, which reported only 40% charge collection efficiency in laboratory tests. - [13:07](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uzV_uzSTCTM&t=787s) Recharging an alkaline-equivalent AA battery (4.5 Wh) using an internal 200 µW diamond core would take approximately 22,500 hours (over 2.5 years) of autonomous self-charging. - [16:34](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uzV_uzSTCTM&t=994s) Promotional figures boasting of energy density 56,000 times greater than lithium-ion conceal the critical bottleneck of abysmal power density and extraction rates. - [19:40](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uzV_uzSTCTM&t=1180s) NDB Inc.'s corporate timeline places working hardware in Phase 4, confirming the company has no physical prototypes or verified electrical power generation data in the public domain. - [21:50](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uzV_uzSTCTM&t=1310s) Harvesting an average of 3,600 electrons per junction represents a negligible fraction of the ~6.24 × 10¹⁸ electrons per second needed to produce just one ampere of electrical current. - [24:01](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uzV_uzSTCTM&t=1441s) Severe material limitations in thin-film diamond design create an unavoidable trade-off between electron recombination and insufficient radioactive emission capture. - [26:06](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uzV_uzSTCTM&t=1566s) Betavoltaics remain viable only as expensive, ultra-low-power trickle generators for decades-long sensor deployments, entirely unsuitable for automotive traction packs or mobile devices.

## Detailed walkthrough ### [00:00](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uzV_uzSTCTM&t=0s) The Viral Hype and the 100 µW Reality Check

Dave opens the video explaining that he has been flooded with requests across Twitter, Facebook, and email regarding viral news stories claiming that "nano diamond self-charging batteries could disrupt energy as we know it." He immediately recognizes the familiar scent of marketing hype. A startup company named NDB Inc. (Nuclear Diamond Battery) has re-ignited media buzz by claiming its technology will revolutionize the energy sector. Dave notes that this narrative is completely recycled; similar hype circulated earlier in the year involving the University of Bristol. At that time, fellow YouTuber Thunderf00t released a comprehensive debunking video analyzing the fundamental nuclear physics, radiation safety, and power output. Dave makes clear that he has no intention of repeating Thunderf00t's deep dive into the physics, emphasizing: “So, I won't touch like any of the physics behind any of this because we don't need to to debunk this thing.”

Despite having dozens of browser tabs open to examine the claims, Dave points out that viewers do not need to read the promotional articles, visit the startup's website, or analyze their pitch decks to see that the product is completely overblown. The claim falls apart entirely upon inspecting a single photograph released by NDB Inc. The image depicts an integrated circuit package resembling a standard dual in-line package (DIP) chip labeled as the NDB Inc. Model B7001 betavoltaic battery. Printed clearly across the package is its rated output: 100 µW (microwatts). Dave highlights the absurdity of media outlets claiming an energy revolution based on microwatts of power, mocking the breathless press releases that boast of 28,000-year lifespans, superior energy density to lithium-ion, indestructible crash safety, and promises to power electric cars: “100 microwatts is going to revolutionize the electric car industry.”

- **Claimed lifespan:** Up to 28,000 years without needing an external recharge. - **Physical form factor shown:** A standard IC DIP package (Model B7001). - **Stated output rating on the chip:** 100 µW (0.0001 W).

[03:08](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uzV_uzSTCTM&t=188s) Commercial Betavoltaics and Questionable Efficiency Metrics

Dave investigates the origins of the photograph and notices a telling detail: NDB Inc. seems to have scrubbed the image from their website and web archives, likely because it is the only asset that actually features a hard, quantifiable number. In reality, commercial betavoltaic batteries outputting 100 µW are neither new nor disruptive. Companies like City Labs have been manufacturing and commercially selling tritium-based betavoltaic batteries (such as their Model P200) for over fifteen years. Betavoltaics function fundamentally as trickle-power energy-harvesting devices, well suited for niche, ultra-low-power applications requiring nanowatts to microwatts of continuous power, or paired with a secondary storage cell for intermittent milliwatt-to-watt bursts. Pointing out the established commercial baseline, Dave remarks: “And of course, betavoltaics are nothing new.”

The promotional material also makes dubious comparative claims, boasting that the battery is "14.29 times more efficient" than radioisotope thermoelectric generators (RTGs) used in deep-space probes. Dave examines the visual trickery of using an odd decimal like 14.29, which can visually fool a casual reader into seeing 14,000 times at a glance. He then runs the numbers on RTGs: a standard plutonium-based space RTG delivers roughly 0.54 watts per gram. Multiplying that by 14.29 would imply a power density of roughly 7.7 watts per gram. If NDB Inc.'s technology could achieve anything remotely close to that level of power density, a package the size of their DIP chip would output watts, not a mere 100 microwatts. Dave notes dryly that the marketing math simply never adds up.

- **Pre-existing technology:** City Labs Model P200 betavoltaic battery offering 100 µW off-the-shelf for over a decade. - **Typical betavoltaic domain:** Continuous nanowatt-to-microwatt baseline loads, or trickle-charging secondary storage. - **Space RTG baseline:** Approximately 0.54 W/g for plutonium-based radioisotope thermoelectric generators. - **Implied NDB density vs. reality:** An alleged 14.29× increase over RTGs would yield ~7.7 W/g, completely contradicting the 100 µW chip rating.

[06:09](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uzV_uzSTCTM&t=369s) The AAA Comparison: Crunching the Numbers

To demonstrate the real-world scale of 100 microwatts, Dave compares the volume of the DIP chip package to an ordinary AAA alkaline battery. Assuming the DIP package has a comparable volume to a AAA cell, Dave establishes that 100 µW represents the absolute maximum continuous instantaneous power the betavoltaic cell can produce. While it might produce that power for centuries, it is physically incapable of delivering higher instantaneous power on its own. Dave pulls up a standard AAA alkaline battery datasheet to contrast this with conventional chemical storage. Under a modest 1 milliamp drain (roughly 1 milliwatt of power, which is 1,000 microwatts—ten times the nuclear chip's output), a single AAA cell lasts approximately 1,400 hours, yielding around 1.8 watt-hours (Wh) of usable capacity.

```mermaid flowchart LR accTitle: Energy Yield Comparison Over Two Years accDescr: Diagram comparing the energy output of a 100 microwatt betavoltaic chip over two years against a single standard AAA battery.

subgraph NDB["NDB Betavoltaic Chip"] P1["Power: 100 µW (0.0001 W)"] Y1["Year 1: 0.876 Wh"] Y2["Year 2: 1.752 Wh"] P1 --> Y1 --> Y2 end

subgraph AAA["Standard AAA Alkaline Cell"] P2["Power: ~1 mW (1,000 µW)"] CAP["Total Capacity: ~1.80 Wh"] P2 --> CAP end

Y2 -.->|"Roughly matches after ~2.05 years"| CAP ```

Dave brings out his calculator to compute the cumulative energy generated by a 100 µW betavoltaic source operating non-stop: 100 µW multiplied by 24 hours per day and 365 days yields approximately 0.876 watt-hours per year. Therefore, it would take more than two entire years of continuous generation just to match the total energy stored inside a single cheap AAA alkaline battery. Dave highlights the absurdity of claiming this technology can run smartphones and electric cars when its volumetric output is so dismal: “So, basically, their little piss-ant energy harvesting betavoltaic battery here, whiz-bang and nano carbon technology, can only generate the same power as a AAA over 2 years.” He points out that this math explains why NDB Inc. removed technical fact sheets and specifications from their website: any engineer performing basic arithmetic can instantly expose that the product is limited strictly to low-drain niche applications.

- **Annual energy output of 100 µW:** 100 µW × 24 h × 365 d ≈ 0.876 Wh/year. - **Two-year energy output:** ~1.75 Wh. - **Single standard AAA alkaline capacity:** ~1.8 Wh (evaluated at a 1 mA drain). - **Time to match one AAA cell:** Approximately 2.05 years of continuous trickle generation. - **Physical prototype evidence:** Zero public test data, discharge curves, power logs, or photographic proof of working hardware.

[09:49](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uzV_uzSTCTM&t=589s) Graphene Supercapacitors and Target Market Fantasies

Examining the rest of NDB Inc.'s claims, Dave spots every contemporary startup buzzword imaginable. The company pairs the betavoltaic generator with a "3D graphene supercapacitor" integrated into the package to capture and store the trickle charge, leading Dave to scoff: “Of course it's got graphene. Graphene's the buzzword of the decade for our startups.” The startup claims that this architecture enables a perpetual smartphone battery that will never run flat or require an external charger. Dave scrolls through their target market pitch, which lists augmented reality, smartphones, tablets, gaming consoles, standalone CPUs, virtual reality headsets, smartwatches, and wearable technology.

The company also illustrates a 1.5 V AA-sized nuclear diamond battery. Dave points out that the marketing literature itself betrays the core limitation: the text admits the nanodiamond material merely "generates and harvests electricity." In electronic engineering, the term "energy harvesting" denotes capturing ambient, microscopic trickles of power—such as nanowatts and microwatts. Dave emphasizes the sharp contrast between energy harvesting and the brute force power requirements of consumer electronics: “When you hear energy harvesting, you know it's little bitty, teeny weeny.” Pairing an ultra-low-power trickle harvester with a supercapacitor cannot overcome the fundamental limit of average power consumption in smartphones and vehicles.

- **Secondary storage mechanism:** Built-in 3D graphene supercapacitor to collect trickle charge. - **Proposed consumer products:** "Never-die" phone batteries and a 1.5 V AA-sized drop-in nuclear battery cell. - **Claimed markets:** Consumer mobile devices, AR/VR, smartwatches, wearable electronics, and electric vehicle traction packs. - **Fundamental engineering classification:** An energy harvester, inherently limited to microscopic average energy generation rates.

[11:22](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uzV_uzSTCTM&t=682s) Efficiency Claims vs. Reality: Marketing vs. The TechCrunch Press Release

Dave examines NDB’s promotional marketing, which asserts that diamond is an exceptionally efficient charge collector capable of near 100% efficiency. He juxtaposes these marketing claims against a contemporaneous *TechCrunch* article regarding the startup’s self-charging 1,000-year battery. The article reports on tests conducted at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory and the Cavendish Laboratory at Cambridge, claiming the battery tech managed a “40% charge” (charge collection efficiency), touted as an improvement over the 15% collection efficiency of standard commercial diamond batteries.

Dave points out the immediate contradiction: while NDB boasts 100% efficiency across its consumer-facing marketing materials, their own press release concedes an achievement of only 40%. The design also incorporates an advanced printed circuit board and a supercapacitor to make up for the battery's weak output. To sell the idea that this technology can run electric vehicles and smartphones, NDB leans heavily on buzzwords, promoting the integration of a graphene supercapacitor simply because graphene won the Nobel Prize in 2010.

> “So, in their own press release here they say, 'No, we only achieve 40%.' But in all their other marketing stuff on the page they're happy to talk up 100%, aren't they?” — Dave Jones

- Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory and Cambridge’s Cavendish Laboratory were cited as test sites. - Tested collection efficiency was reported as 40%, compared to 15% for baseline commercial diamond batteries. - Marketing materials routinely claim near 100% collection efficiency despite these laboratory findings. - The battery assembly integrates an internal boost converter PCB and a supercapacitor for energy storage.

---

[13:07](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uzV_uzSTCTM&t=787s) Dissecting the NDB AA Concept: Renderings, Reality, and Charging Math

Dave reviews a promotional video showcasing NDB’s proposed AA battery concept, which claims to be made from recycled nuclear waste and nanotechnology, offering 100% efficiency, holding 3.5 times more charge than an alkaline cell, and being 53% smaller with identical weight. Examining their 3D rendering, he mocks the bizarre design errors, such as surface-mount components depicted with through-hole pins on the boost converter PCB. Physically, the bottom of the cylinder houses a tiny betavoltaic nuclear diamond source, while the top holds the energy-harvesting circuitry and a supercapacitor.

```mermaid flowchart TD accTitle: NDB AA Battery Internal Concept accDescr: Diagram illustrating the components inside NDB's proposed AA battery form factor. subgraph BatteryShell["NDB AA Enclosure"] SuperCap["Supercapacitor Storage<br>(Graphene Buffer)"] PCB["Energy Harvesting PCB<br>(Boost Converter Circuit)"] Source["Betavoltaic Nuclear Diamond Core<br>(~100 to 200 µW Output)"] end Source -->|"Trickle charge"| PCB PCB -->|"Store energy"| SuperCap SuperCap -->|"Regulated output"| OutputTerminal["External Terminals"] ```

Dave does not contest that NDB could theoretically build such a package, but he runs the basic physics calculations on recharging it. A standard disposable AA alkaline cell stores roughly 4.5 watt-hours (equivalent to 5 mW over 900 hours). Assuming a generous 200 microwatt (0.0002 W) output from the internal diamond core, Dave calculates the time needed to fully self-charge from empty:

$$\text{Recharge Time} = \frac{4.5\text{ W}\cdot\text{h}}{0.0002\text{ W}} = 22,500\text{ hours} \approx 2.57\text{ years}$$

If a user expends the AA battery's energy in a day or two, they would have to wait over 22,000 hours for the cell to replenish itself via betavoltaics. Dave highlights that the only practical way to use such a cell is by plugging it into a wall charger like any conventional rechargeable battery, rendering the self-charging betavoltaic component virtually useless for high-drain applications.

> “So, your whiz-bang double-A here is is self-charged to self—let's say it comes from the factory, it's pre-charged, it's self-charged, and you used up your double-A capacity, you used up your 4 and 1/2 watt hours, you pissed it away in a day or two, and you want your battery to recharge itself from the built-in 200 microwatt source, then yeah, you're going to have to wait 22,000 hours for this thing to self-recharge.” — Dave Jones

- Standard AA battery energy capacity used for baseline: 4.5 Wh (5 mW across 900 hours). - Generous continuous internal harvesting power: 200 µW. - Calculated autonomous recharge duration: 22,500 hours (over 2.5 years). - NDB marketing claims the cell can produce 3.5 times the capacity of a typical AA cell every single hour.

---

[16:34](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uzV_uzSTCTM&t=994s) Marketing Claims vs. Energy Density: Hiding the Microwatt Bottleneck

Dave dismantles NDB's wild marketing claims, including their assertion that the battery can generate 3.5 times the capacity of a standard AA battery every hour, or fully power a smartphone while producing seven times its full charge hourly. He points out that NDB’s own graphic showing a 100 µW power source completely refutes these statistics. Searching their website reveals an intentional lack of technical documentation, power curves, or output specs, because disclosing microwatt outputs undermines the hype.

Instead, NDB relies entirely on energy density figures to impress non-technical investors. They claim the battery is 4,000 times more energy dense than gasoline and 56,000 times denser than lithium-ion cells (like 18650s). Dave notes that while the raw nuclear energy trapped in radioactive carbon may theoretically possess immense volumetric energy density, power density is the real-world limitation: the energy simply cannot be extracted at an acceptable rate. Furthermore, while NDB claims to be 16 times more efficient than standard betavoltaics, existing tritium devices (like City Labs' Model P100/NanoTritium) yield the same ~100 µW output in comparable physical footprints. Even granting their claimed 16× efficiency boost, self-recharging an alkaline-equivalent AA battery would still require roughly 1,400 hours (nearly two months).

> “Their own marketing image disproves their own numbers. No wonder they don't want to show that anywhere on their website or put any technical information whatsoever on their website.” — Dave Jones

- Claimed volumetric density: 4,000× that of gasoline and 56,000× that of lithium-ion (18650) cells. - Real-world extraction rate shown on NDB's own slide: ~100 µW. - Benchmark comparison: City Labs commercial tritium betavoltaic produces ~100 µW in a similar volume. - Even with a hypothetical 16× improvement in efficiency, a AA-equivalent recharge still takes over 1,400 hours.

---

[19:40](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uzV_uzSTCTM&t=1180s) Five-Phase Roadmap and Lack of Prototypes

Dave analyzes NDB’s company timeline, which outlines a five-phase roadmap: 1. Identify opportunities and write a initial business plan. 2. Build the scientific and business structure while sourcing capital. 3. Conduct a formal 18-month evaluation. 4. Develop actual physical prototypes. 5. Finalize the product based on beta-tester feedback and launch.

Dave points out that NDB was incorporated on February 4, 2019, meaning they are only in the early planning stages and looking for investor funding. Despite the avalanche of media attention from outlets like *TechCrunch* and *New Atlas*, the company has no working prototypes, no hardware photographs, and zero published performance data. Their so-called proof-of-concept tests merely noted a 40% charge collection efficiency in laboratory conditions, without disclosing any real electrical power generation. Dave concludes that NDB is operating like a classic energy startup selling inflated figures without solving the fundamental physics bottleneck of energy harvesting.

> “There are no prototype photos whatsoever. There's no data at all. Because if this stuff really existed, they'd be publishing the data and they'd be money would be pouring in.” — Dave Jones

- Company incorporation date: February 4, 2019. - Working prototypes are slated only for Phase 4 of their five-phase plan. - Media coverage driven by articles from *TechCrunch* and *New Atlas*. - Zero verified electrical power generation curves or working device prototypes exist in the public domain.

[21:50](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uzV_uzSTCTM&t=1310s) The Reality of Betavoltaic Electron Harvesting

Dave combs through the NDB website looking for any genuine technical specifications or test data, urging viewers to link to real figures below the video if they can uncover any. He notes that the website provides pages of conceptual descriptions, manufacturing claims, and electron harvesting explanations, yet conspicuously avoids publishing hard numbers for the cell sizes or test yields. The site claims that an ideal device can harvest a maximum of 11,400 electrons and an average of 3,600 electrons, while stating that the current yield depends heavily on variables like device design, diamond purity, crystallinity, and size.

```mermaid flowchart TD accTitle: Current Scale Comparison accDescr: A comparison showing the vast scale gap between 1 amp of current and NDB's mean electron generation rate.

subgraph ScaleGap["Electron Scale Comparison"] A["1 Ampere of Current<br>(~6.24 × 10¹⁸ electrons/sec)"] B["NDB Harvest Claim<br>(~3,600 mean electrons)"] A -.->|"Vast orders of magnitude gap"| B end ```

Dave puts the company's electron count into perspective for anyone imagining this could drive high-current machinery like an electric vehicle. One ampere of electric current consists of roughly $6 \times 10^{18}$ electrons flowing per second. Generating a mean of 3,600 electrons from a junction does not begin to register on the scale needed for consumer power: “This thing, one junction can generate 3,600. Whoop-de-doo.” Meanwhile, the publicity photograph showing a 100-microwatt dual in-line package (DIP) chip complete with a product number seems to have quietly vanished from the main pitch:

> “You can't find that product—just the DIP product has just mysteriously vanished because, well, you don't want people to know that it's just a piss-ant, you know, betavoltaic generator just like you've been able to buy for the last decade.”

- **Harvested electron claims:** Up to 11,400 maximum electrons, with an average around 3,600 electrons. - **Scale of electric current:** 1 A equals roughly $6 \times 10^{18}$ electrons per second, dwarfing the device's single-junction output. - **The actual underlying concept:** A low-power betavoltaic generator paired with a graphene supercapacitor in a standard package, accompanied by polished marketing materials to draw investor money.

---

[24:01](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uzV_uzSTCTM&t=1441s) Nanotechnology Jargon vs. Conceptual Prototypes

Examining the site's diagrams on electron capture as a function of depth and distance, Dave points out how the company relies on sophisticated terminology to describe thin-film diamond optimization. The documentation talks about adjusting diamond layer thickness to generate electrons near the collector surface, using titanium charge collectors because of purported benefits over gold, and employing boron-doped ohmic interfaces. Yet Dave dismisses the elaborate schematics because none of these physical devices exist outside of concept art:

> “Without the actual data, it's all just useless marketing waffle.”

NDB's own literature concedes that nano-batteries represent an emerging field fraught with extreme execution hurdles requiring precise atomic-scale material manipulation. Dave highlights the physical catch-22 outlined in their text: if the diamond layer is too thick, released electrons recombine and are absorbed back into the material; if the layer is made too thin, there is insufficient material to release electrons efficiently. While the underlying physics of betavoltaics is legitimate, the staggering claims that these devices are 10,000 to 50,000 times more energy-dense than lithium-ion batteries obscure the real bottleneck. With only 100 microwatts of continuous output, an AA or AAA battery form factor would require thousands of hours simply to accumulate enough charge for a short burst of work.

- **Collector material:** Conceptual design specifies titanium collectors over gold alongside boron-doped ohmic interfaces. - **Material constraints:** Layer thickness requires precise nanometer tuning to prevent electron recombination without sacrificing radioactive emission capture. - **Energy density vs. power density:** Extreme volumetric energy density over decades does not compensate for sub-milliwatt power delivery rates.

---

[26:06](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uzV_uzSTCTM&t=1566s) Niche Betavoltaics and the Automotive Myth

Dave calls out the claims that these cells will disrupt everyday sectors like automotive transport, consumer electronics, medical implants, aviation, and space systems. In reality, the technology is fundamentally identical to commercial betavoltaic cells that have been available for over a decade. Commercial tritium-based chips, such as those from City Labs, run for decades (around 20 to 40 years) and command high prices—often a couple of thousand dollars per chip—because they serve specialized low-power, long-life niches:

> “It's not going to disrupt energy. Anyone who invests money in this thing or spreads this thinking that it's going to change the world and oh, we're going to have nuclear diamond batteries in our EVs. It's just no, it's crap.”

Dave concludes that betavoltaic energy harvesting has a valid place in extreme longevity, low-drain niche monitoring, but will never run cars or smartphones. He wraps up the debunking, declaring the case closed: “Look, 100 microwatts. It's done. It's dusted. This is energy harvesting beta-voltaic battery. The end.” He asks viewers for thumbs-up ratings, invites ongoing discussion on the EEVblog forum, reminds viewers of his alternative channels across Vimeo, BitTube, and Dailymotion, and signs off.

## Notable quotes > [24:01](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uzV_uzSTCTM&t=1441s) Without the actual data, it's all just useless marketing waffle. — Dave Jones

## Mentioned EEVblog, Dave Jones, NDB Inc., Thunderf00t, University of Bristol, City Labs, City Labs Model P200, City Labs Model P100, NanoTritium, TechCrunch, New Atlas, Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, Cavendish Laboratory, Cambridge University

## Video description Dave debunks the marketing claims of self-charging Nano Nuclear Diamond Batteries in the first 10 minutes using their own material. The rest of the video is cream on top. NDB Inc supposedly have a nano diamond self-charging nuclear battery that will revolutionise the energy industry and power electric vehicle and mobile phones. TLDR; it's no better than existing 100uW commercial betavoltaic batteries, but has an added graphene supercapacitor in the AA package.The rest is marketing BS. https://ndb.technology/ Check out the Investor pack!: https://ndb.technology/pitch/NDB_Investor_Pack.pdf

Thunderf00t's Nuclear diamond battery BUSTED video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JDFlV0OEK5E

Betavoltaics presentation from City Labs: https://www.energy.gov/sites/prod/files/2015/08/f26/Cabauy%20Tritium%20Focus%20Group%20Presentation.pdf

Forum: https://www.eevblog.com/forum/blog/eevblog-1333-nano-diamond-self-charging-battery-debunked!/

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[Source](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uzV_uzSTCTM)

中文简报

宣称可驱动电动车的NDB核电池实际输出仅为微瓦级 该初创公司的技术仅能产生100微瓦的持续功率，需要两年多才能达到单节AAA电池的能量，其关于智能手机和电动车的宣称在数学上完全不可能。 Dave Jones系统性驳斥了网络上关于NDB公司核钻石电池将彻底改变储能技术、为智能手机永久供电或驱动电动汽车的狂热宣传。通过分析NDB自身的宣传材料——特别是一张额定功率仅为100微瓦的集成电路图片——Dave指出该技术本质上是一种微能量采集器，而非高功率输出电源。简单的算术表明，一个100微瓦的发电机需要两年以上才能产生相当于单节廉价AAA碱性电池的能量，且需要2.5年以上才能为AA大小的电池组完成自充电。Dave还指出，City Labs等公司销售用于小众低功耗领域的商用贝塔伏特电池已有十余年历史，而NDB极高的能量密度数据、100%效率的说法以及充斥流行词的技术路线图，不仅掩盖了其严重的功率密度瓶颈，更掩盖了其完全缺乏可用原型机的事实。 初创公司NDB宣称其自充电纳米钻石电池可为电动汽车和智能手机供电的病毒式营销说辞，在其自身的规格参数前不攻自破：其产品图片上标明的电池额定功率仅为100微瓦。 (0:00) 按100微瓦的持续输出计算，需要连续采集两年多的能量，才能达到单节一次性AAA碱性电池1.8瓦时的容量。 (6:09) 十多年来，City Labs等公司一直对外销售输出功率同为约100微瓦的商用贝塔伏特设备，专门用于低功耗、长寿命的小众应用。 (3:08) NDB公司目前缺乏实物原型、硬件照片或已发布的测试数据，仅依赖一份五阶段路线图，而原型产品甚至要到第四阶段才会推出。 (19:40)

Source quotes

[24:01] Dave Jones: Without the actual data, it's all just useless marketing waffle.

Original transcript

[0:00] HI, I'VE GOTTEN SO MANY REQUESTS TO do [0:03] this one because it's making its rounds [0:05] on Twitter and the Facebooks yet again. [0:08] Nano diamond self-charging batteries [0:11] could disrupt energy as we know it. [0:16] What's that you can smell? Yeah, [0:18] marketing [ __ ] So, thanks to [0:21] everyone who copied me on their tweets [0:22] and their Facebooks and their emails and [0:24] everything and linked in this article [0:27] and other articles about uh it's just [0:29] hit the news again. Everyone's talking [0:31] about it. The this [0:33] NDB or nuclear diamond battery ink [0:37] corporation, um it's a startup company [0:40] who have claimed that they're going to [0:42] revolutionize the energy industry as we [0:44] know it with these nuclear diamond [0:46] batteries. And of course, there's [0:47] nothing new here before at all. We saw [0:50] this back in January when the University [0:53] of Bristol and other places were all [0:55] talking about hyping up these nuclear [0:58] diamond battery powers. And at the time, [1:01] Thunderfoot uh did a busting video on [1:03] this. I'll link it in up here and down [1:05] below and at the end if you haven't seen [1:07] it. And he goes over the whole like all [1:09] the physics behind it and the safety and [1:11] the power output and everything else. [1:13] There's just a ton of stuff in there. [1:15] So, watch that. I won't re-cover like [1:18] almost anything that he's covered in [1:20] here. So, I won't touch like any of the [1:23] physics behind any of this because we [1:25] don't need to to debunk this thing. Yes, [1:28] I know I've got a lot of tabs open up [1:30] there and we might eventually get to a [1:32] lot of them. But hey, I'll save you the [1:35] time and effort of watching most of this [1:38] video. If you just want the quick [1:39] skinny, you don't even need to read the [1:42] article. You don't need to go to the [1:43] company's website, watch any of their [1:45] presentations, look at analyze any of [1:47] the other information whatsoever. You [1:49] can bust this by just looking at the [1:53] photo in the article here. And here it [1:55] is, NDB Inc. 100 microwatt [2:00] betavoltaic battery, model B7001 [2:04] NDB Inc. USA nuclear diamond battery. [2:08] Look, it's the size of, you know, a [2:10] typical dip chip like this, right? There [2:14] it is. 100 microwatts. [2:17] That's the mu symbol, micro. [2:20] Microwatts. [2:23] Yet, somehow this could disrupt energy [2:26] as we know it. [2:28] Microwatts. You know how many [2:30] applications there are for products that [2:32] need microwatts of power? [2:36] Yeah. [2:37] Not many. But, these nanodiamond [2:39] batteries, they will blow energy density [2:41] comparisons out of the water. Oh, it [2:44] 28,000 years without ever needing a [2:47] charge. They'll offer higher power [2:49] density than lithium-ion. They'll be [2:51] nigh on indestructible, totally safe in [2:54] electric car crashes. And in some [2:56] applications like electric cars, they [2:57] stand to be considerably cheaper than [2:59] current lithium-ion packs due to their [3:01] HUGE ADVANTAGES. 100 MICROWATTS is going [3:03] to revolutionize the electric car [3:05] industry. [3:07] Oh. [3:08] Now, here's the interesting thing. I [3:10] think the company slipped up because if [3:13] you actually go, you search their [3:15] website thoroughly, you even search the [3:17] archives of their website, you can't [3:19] find this image anywhere. Yet, it [3:21] actually comes from them because why? [3:25] Why can't you find it anywhere? Please [3:27] link it down below if you can because [3:29] it's actually got a number on it, a [3:31] quantifiable number. 100 microwatts. [3:34] That gives you the power output of this [3:37] uh betavoltaic battery. And of course, [3:40] betavoltaics are nothing new. 100 [3:42] microwatt betavoltaic batteries are [3:44] nothing new. City Labs, they've been [3:46] doing it for 15 years. You can just buy [3:49] a commercial off-the-shelf. There it is. [3:51] City Labs, 100 microwatt beta voltaic [3:54] battery, the model P200. No worries, [3:57] nothing new here at all. I'll even link [3:58] in the City City Labs promos down down [4:02] below. So, yeah, these things are a real [4:04] thing. In this case, they use tritium [4:06] instead of, you know, this nuclear [4:08] diamond thing, which we won't even go [4:09] into the physics of it. I don't care. It [4:12] doesn't matter. The fact is that these [4:15] are basically energy harvesting devices, [4:18] and we'll get into why they're claiming [4:21] all of this marketing BS in a minute. [4:23] And beta voltaic, suitable for low-power [4:25] robust applications, nanowatts through [4:28] to microwatts. Power verse fire [4:30] secondary trickle trickle charging, [4:33] milliwatts to watts. And this is where [4:37] the this new nuclear diamond battery [4:40] comes in. Look at this, a tiny [4:43] nanodiamond battery that's going to [4:44] change the world. Hundreds of years of [4:46] lifetime, safe and unbreakable, seven [4:49] times charge size versus current phone [4:52] batteries. I don't quite understand [4:54] that. Tiny module that can be sized to [4:56] any device. It's a 14.29 [4:59] times. You might think that's Oh, oh, [5:01] little tiny decimal point there, little [5:03] marketing trick. Like whacking a tiny [5:05] decimal point and putting lots of [5:07] significant figures, so it looks like, [5:09] oh, at a glance, oh, 14,029 [5:11] times more efficient than [5:13] radioisotope [5:15] generators that are used in like deep [5:17] space probes and things like that, [5:18] because uh once you get that far out, [5:21] you can't get you can't rely on solar [5:22] power, so you've got to have these [5:24] nuclear generators. It's 14.29 times [5:28] more efficient, you say. Well, okay, [5:30] let's go to a radioisotope [5:31] thermoelectric generator, which they use [5:33] in space probes. Let's look at the the [5:36] plutonium-based version. We're talking [5:38] about 0.54 watts per gram. So, multiply [5:42] that by 14.4, and we're talking about [5:45] 7.7 watts per gram by that sort of [5:50] metric what efficiency means. Uh yeah, I [5:54] don't know. But, I I Okay, it's 14 times [5:58] better. Um okay, so 7.7 watts per gram, [6:02] why does this just have 100 microwatts [6:06] for a DIP size chip? Hmm. [6:09] Marketing never adds up. So, right [6:12] there, right off the bat, using the [6:15] company's own image for their beta [6:18] voltaic battery here, they've put this [6:21] figure in which you can't find anywhere [6:23] else, 100 microwatts. We've got a [6:26] quantifiable number we can work with. [6:28] So, if we take this, you know, chip, [6:30] it's roughly, you know, it's going [6:32] roughly This one's a little a slightly [6:33] bigger, but the volume, let's just go [6:35] for volumetric efficiency, shall we? The [6:37] volume of this thing, right, I'm going [6:39] to say roughly equivalent to a AAA [6:42] battery, okay? Just work with me. 100 [6:45] microwatts. That's going to be like its [6:48] maximum power output. And [6:50] as as we saw, we have Look, there are [6:53] other ones can be in commercially [6:54] available for like a decade, 100 [6:57] microwatt beta voltaic batteries, right? [6:59] So, let's look at a AAA. So, 100 [7:03] microwatts, that is the maximum power [7:05] that this thing can generate. Sure, it [7:07] can generate it for a long time. I have [7:08] no doubt it does it for, you know, with [7:10] the hundreds of years or whatever they [7:11] claim. Okay, fine. I'm not going to get [7:14] into the details of that. But, 100 [7:15] microwatts is not capable of generating [7:18] any more instantaneous power than that. [7:20] Now, if we go and have a look at a AAA [7:23] battery data sheet here at 1 milliamp [7:27] constant current draw, so let's just [7:28] call that roughly 1 mW, right? A [7:31] milliwatt is 1,000 microwatts. It's [7:35] already generating 10 times that, but it [7:39] can go for 1,400 [7:41] hours at 10 times that. Now, that [7:44] actually works out to a capacity in a [7:46] AAA battery at low currents like this of [7:49] typically around 1.8 watt hours for an [7:52] alkaline battery. Let's get out our [7:54] confuser here. Uh 100 microwatts times [7:59] 24 hours times 365 [8:04] days a year is uh in 1 year this little [8:10] uh beta voltaic battery can produce [8:12] about [8:13] 0.8 [8:14] Well, you know, 0.87 watt hours. So, [8:17] basically, their little piss-ant energy [8:19] harvesting uh beta voltaic battery here, [8:22] whiz-bang and nano carbon technology, [8:26] can [8:27] only generate the same power as a AAA [8:32] over 2 years. Sure, as I said, it can do [8:35] it longer, but for the same volume, [8:39] it's like a AAA battery for 2 years. [8:42] What? And this is going to disrupt [8:45] energy as we know it? We're going to be [8:47] able to power [8:48] uh you know, electric cars and phones [8:51] and all sorts of things with this thing? [8:53] No. It's [ __ ] It's busted right [8:56] there. All of these claims are just [8:58] start-up marketing wankery. And this is [9:00] why I guarantee you, go and look through [9:03] their website and nowhere on the [9:05] website, even in the archives, I [9:07] searched uh things and mysteriously, by [9:09] the way, all their app presentations, [9:12] their presentation fact sheets are [9:14] mysteriously missing from their website. [9:17] Why? Just like this image is missing [9:20] from their website because it contains a [9:22] number on it, a quantifiable number that [9:24] people who, if they actually did a few [9:27] basic calculations, would be able to [9:30] show that this thing is never going to [9:32] disrupt the energy market because it has [9:35] only niche application in ultra low [9:38] power devices. So, So, yeah, you don't [9:40] even have to go past the first image [9:43] supplied by the company to know that [9:46] everything else is just complete [9:48] hyperbole. And by the way, nowhere on [9:50] the website, nowhere on the web at all [9:52] can I find any evidence of any prototype [9:57] of this thing. There's no photos, [9:59] there's no data, there's no output [10:01] power, there's no characteristic curves, [10:03] there's nothing. All we have Best we've [10:05] got [10:06] is this DIP size chip that says 100 [10:10] microwatts on it. Whoop-de-doo! You've [10:12] been able to buy those for a decade. [10:14] Look at this, it's got graphene. Of [10:16] course it's got graphene. Graphene's the [10:18] buzzword of the decade for our startups. [10:22] And so, it's got a 3D super capacitor to [10:25] store the charge. Aha! [10:28] A phone that will never run out or need [10:30] to be recharged ever. Oh, read more. [10:33] Best life battery phone. I don't think [10:36] I've even looked at that one yet. And [10:38] look at all this marketing wank. [10:40] Seriously, like I I won't go through it [10:42] all. It is just all stuff Oh, we're [10:44] going to target, you know, augmented [10:46] reality, smartphones, tablets, game [10:48] consoles, cell power and CPUs, virtual [10:50] reality, smartwatches, wearable tech. [10:52] Our target markets are all these [10:53] companies and like you know, come on. [10:58] Anyway, what we're interested in this [11:00] 1.5 V. Look, 1.5 V double A [11:05] nuclear diamond battery. And they even [11:07] tell you on the webpage here, if you [11:09] care to read, the nano diamond generates [11:11] and harvests electricity. It's an energy [11:14] harvesting system. When you hear energy [11:17] harvesting, you know it's little bitty, [11:19] teeny weeny. Oh, by the way, they claim [11:22] here what makes diamond unique is that [11:24] because it is an excellent charge [11:26] collector, near 100% efficiency, it can [11:28] collect almost all the charge generated, [11:30] meaning it's incredibly efficient. Oh, [11:32] yeah? Let's go over to this TechCrunch [11:34] article here which just came out. I [11:37] couldn't find the press release for this [11:39] by the way because their press release [11:40] page doesn't actually have this, but [11:42] obviously TechCrunch got a press [11:43] release. Self-charging 1,000 year [11:45] battery startup. They claim that they [11:47] ace their key test and lands first beta [11:49] customers. Okay, they've aced their test [11:52] and you would think they'd have data in [11:53] here. So, these tests took place [11:55] Lawrence Livermore National Lab and the [11:57] Cavendish at Cambridge and both uh NDB's [12:01] battery tech managed a 40% [12:03] charge. I don't know what that means. 40 [12:05] I assume that's 40% efficiency was a big [12:08] improvement over the 15% charge [12:10] collection efficiency [12:12] of standard commercial diamond [12:13] batteries. So, in their own press [12:15] release here they say, "No, we only [12:17] achieve 40%." But in all their other [12:19] marketing stuff on the page they're [12:20] happy to talk up 100%, aren't they? [12:22] Yeah. But look, it contains an advanced [12:25] printed circuit board and a [12:27] supercapacitor. [12:30] Aha. And they tell you another reason [12:33] why the battery has such a wide range of [12:35] applications like all the EVs and [12:37] everything else they're talking about is [12:39] because it has charge storage. It's got [12:41] a graphene supercapacitor in it. Of [12:44] course it has. If you ever need to use a [12:47] lot of charge in one go even beyond what [12:50] the nano diamond is producing, the whole [12:52] 100 microwatts of it, the supercapacitor [12:56] is there to make that possible. Oh, [12:58] graphene. It won the Nobel Prize in [13:00] 2010, so it must be good and it's so uh [13:03] these supercapacitors absolutely [13:05] fantastic. Well, let's take a look at [13:07] their double A battery, shall we? NDB [13:10] double A. Here we go. We've got a wanky [13:12] video made from recycled nuclear waste. [13:15] Made using nano technology. Sorry, [13:18] that's that's a bit hard to read, isn't [13:19] it? I don't know what they mean by this. [13:21] In 1 hour it's a 100% efficient. Once [13:25] again, they're assuming that 100% [13:27] efficient is holding three and a half [13:28] times more charge than a regular AA. [13:31] It's 53% smaller, identical in weight. [13:35] What? [13:36] For 100 micro amp source. Anyway, here [13:38] we go. Look, you can get different [13:40] voltage outputs. And this is where their [13:43] super capacitor and their energy [13:45] harvesting chip, right? Their energy [13:48] harvesting boost converter here. Oh, [13:50] look at that. I love the little the way [13:52] that the caps like the surface mount [13:55] components are actually through hole [13:57] pins on them. Anyway, wow. So, it's a [14:00] nano So, it's a like the 100 micro watt [14:03] energy source because that's all you'd [14:05] fit in based on their own photo. Fits in [14:08] the bottom of that AA and then they've [14:09] got a tiny little super capacitor up the [14:11] top top so it can Yeah, look, I don't [14:14] dispute that they can actually, you [14:16] know, they could probably make this, [14:18] right? I'm not going to dispute that at [14:20] all. And it'll like [14:23] Okay, it'll be a double AA that last [14:25] forever. But the fact is, it's a one [14:28] based on their own photo of that 100 [14:30] micro watt source, that's about the [14:32] volume that you'd fit in the bottom of [14:34] the double AA, you know, a couple [14:36] hundred micro watts tops even if they [14:38] can do it in the cylindrical form [14:40] factor. But let's just assume that they [14:42] can, then [14:44] that's your energy source. A couple [14:46] hundred micro watts maximum. How long [14:50] does that take to charge a super cap to [14:53] give a standard double AA output [14:55] capacity? Okay, let's go to a double AA [14:58] battery here. 5 milliwatts, 900 hours. [15:01] We're talking about 4 and a half watt [15:04] hours in a double AA a standard size [15:07] double AA battery. So, that's what it's [15:09] got to emulate. So, 4 and a half watt [15:12] hours divided by let's be generous and [15:14] say 200 micro watts [15:18] you know, 200 micro watt generation. Oh, [15:22] 22,500 [15:25] hours. So, your whiz-bang double-A here [15:28] is is self-charged to self Let's say it [15:30] comes from the factory, it's [15:32] pre-charged, it's self-charged, and you [15:34] used up your double-A capacity, you used [15:36] up your 4 and 1/2 watt hours, you pissed [15:38] it away in a day or two, and you want [15:40] your battery to recharge itself from the [15:43] built-in 200 microwatt source, then [15:46] yeah, you're going to have to wait [15:48] 22,000 hours for this thing to [15:51] self-recharge. [15:54] It's ridiculous. The reason that they [15:56] claiming all of these ridiculous claims [15:59] is because presumably you'll be able to [16:02] recharge [16:04] the double-A battery or the 18650 cell [16:06] or whatever it is, that you'll be able [16:08] to recharge this like a normal [16:10] rechargeable battery. It's no different [16:12] to any other rechargeable battery [16:13] technology, [16:15] but in this case it's a graphene [16:16] supercapacitor. The fact that it has [16:18] this nuclear diamond battery in it, this [16:20] little piss-weak couple hundred [16:22] microwatt nuclear diamond battery, [16:25] whoop-de-do, it'll recharge in 22,000 [16:28] hours. Wow, this is going to [16:30] revolutionize the entire energy [16:32] industry, absolutely. So, all these [16:34] claims down here, it'll be able to [16:36] produce three and a half times more [16:37] charge than the entire content of a [16:39] typical disposable double-A battery [16:41] every hour. That is absolute [ __ ] [16:45] based on their own Look, 100 microwatts [16:48] source. [16:50] It They just run the numbers. A [16:52] smartphone in just 1 hour, a 100% [16:55] efficient and even if they can get 100% [16:57] efficiency, which [16:59] their their own press release says that [17:01] they're only getting like 40%, will be [17:02] able to produce seven times more charge [17:05] than the entire content of a typical [17:07] smartphone battery every hour. [17:10] [ __ ] Their own marketing image [17:13] disproves their own numbers. No wonder [17:15] they don't want to show that anywhere on [17:17] their website or put any [17:20] technical information whatsoever on [17:22] their website. Go search through the [17:24] whole thing. It's a very extensive [17:25] website. I've I've used Google to search [17:28] like specifically target the uh site [17:31] itself trying to find presentations that [17:33] have any resemblance of data in it [17:36] whatsoever that shows you the power [17:38] output from their uh beta voltaic [17:40] battery and a nuclear diamond battery. [17:43] You know, it's a beta voltaic what ever. [17:45] And it's just not there because they [17:46] don't want to tell you the real numbers. [17:49] They just want to do like page after [17:51] page of marketing. It's just uh product [17:54] competition. It's just like here it is, [17:56] right? This is why they'll only ever [17:58] talk about energy density. Like I have [18:01] no doubt that it's 4,000 times more [18:03] energy dense than gasoline. It's 56,000 [18:06] times more energy dense than [18:07] electrochemical batteries like 18650. [18:10] Yes, it may be because you use a tiny [18:12] amount of your you know, your diamond or [18:14] whatever can [18:16] with your radiation can. Yeah, they're [18:18] very dense. Yes, but you can't get it [18:21] out. Their own photo here [18:25] 100 microwatts. I keep going back to it. [18:28] They've slipped up. They've released a [18:29] number there. They've told you what this [18:32] thing can actually produce in that sort [18:34] of volume, 100 microwatts just like the [18:36] other beta voltaic batteries that we've [18:38] seen here. So yeah, all their marketing [18:40] is just going to be based on oh, energy [18:42] density, energy density and they can [18:43] prove it and they're right, right? I'm [18:45] I'm not even going to dispute that, [18:47] okay? I haven't double-checked, but hey, [18:49] let's just run with that, right? It's [18:51] it's 56,000 times more energy dense than [18:53] lithium ion batteries. Okay, and it's 16 [18:57] times here we go, 16 times more [18:59] efficient than a typical beta voltaic. [19:02] Okay. So if it's 16 times more [19:05] efficient, why [19:08] does the leading one on the market, the [19:10] 100 microwatt beta voltaic from City [19:13] Labs, the model P N 200. Let's just call [19:16] it roughly the same size as their one [19:19] here, 100 microwatts. They're both [19:21] exactly the same number. In, you know, [19:24] roughly the same package, where's the 16 [19:27] times? But even if it was 16 times, [19:29] let's take that 22,500 [19:32] hours again and divide that by 16. Oh, [19:35] the double A battery's only going to [19:36] take 1,400 hours to recharge itself. [19:40] Yeah, great. And then they've got this [19:43] timeline. It'll be implemented in five [19:45] phases. Phase one is the opportunity [19:47] will be identified, a business plan will [19:49] be composed around the initial idea. And [19:52] this company hasn't been going that [19:53] long. So, I think they're still on phase [19:56] one or phase two. We'll develop that [19:58] idea by scientifically and business [19:59] strategically by establishing the [20:01] structure of the company that will [20:02] develop the idea into a product. [20:05] Sourcing funding develops initial Yeah, [20:07] that's what they're doing. They're [20:08] looking to fund this thing. They've got [20:11] nothing to show. There are no prototype [20:13] photos whatsoever. There's no data at [20:16] all. Because if this stuff really [20:18] existed, they'd be publishing the data [20:21] and they'd be money would be pouring in. [20:23] But it's not. It's just your typical [20:26] energy startup who just have to market [20:28] in terms of, "Oh, it's X amount thousand [20:31] times more energy dense." and all that [20:33] sort of stuff. They don't get into the [20:34] practicalities that this isn't energy [20:37] harvesting device. Phase three, we'll [20:40] outline the end of 18-month period, a [20:41] formal review will be carried out to [20:43] evaluate the process after 18 months. [20:45] Phase four, we'll then further develop [20:47] into a prototype. They'll finally get to [20:49] a prototype by phase four. [20:52] Where's the photo of their prototype? [20:54] They know it is. [20:56] It doesn't exist. [20:58] Then they'll finalize the details and [20:59] launch the product through feedback from [21:01] beta testers. Oh, wonderful. And Nano [21:04] Diamond Battery Organization It only [21:06] founded February 4th, 2019. So, it's [21:10] been going for a year. No prototypes. [21:14] What's Although they claim to have [21:16] actually tested something at those labs [21:18] as I as you saw it and it got 40% [21:21] efficiency. There's no power output [21:23] stuff whatsoever. So, uh yeah, they're [21:26] just like they're nowhere. And that's [21:29] all their recent news. There it is, the [21:31] TechCrunch article and there's and that [21:32] New Atlas article that's generating all [21:34] the hype. And here's an article here [21:36] just released their two [21:38] proof-of-concepts. And once again, yeah, [21:40] they're saying like uh 40% charge 15 [21:43] it's more than the 15% charge collection [21:45] of uh previous ones or something like [21:47] that. But like there's nothing else. [21:50] There's nothing else. Seriously, please, [21:52] if you can find any data at all on this [21:55] thing, link it in down below. And then [21:57] they talk about device fabrication. Just [21:59] go through the website. It's got [22:01] everything everything you could possibly [22:04] want except any actual data. And you can [22:07] look at the design of it and everything. [22:10] Look, they actually talk about, yeah, it [22:12] harvests harvests electrons basically. [22:15] And look, the maximum amount of [22:17] electrons it can harvest 11,400 [22:21] The mean [22:23] 3,600 [22:25] electrons. It doesn't say what actual uh [22:28] you know, size cell actually does that. [22:31] But anyway, it can The ideal device The [22:33] ideal one could produce up to 1,000 [22:36] electrons per decade with an average of [22:38] blur electrons. So, they don't actually [22:40] say. But once again, go back to that [22:42] photo, 100 microwatts for a DIP-size [22:46] chip. And of course, the exact amount of [22:48] current that it could yield depends [22:51] heavily on variables such as device [22:52] design, diamond purity, crystallinity, [22:55] and size. So, yeah, [22:58] they don't tell you. There's no numbers [23:00] anywhere. But once again, their own [23:03] publicity photo, 100 microwatts in a DIP [23:06] size package. They've even got a product [23:08] number for that. You can't find that [23:11] product just the DIP product has just [23:13] mysteriously vanished because well, you [23:15] don't want people to know that it's just [23:17] a piss ant, you know, beta voltaic [23:19] generator just like you've been able to [23:21] buy for the last decade. But hey, we've [23:23] whacked a graphene super capacitor on it [23:25] and we've got a fantastic marketing [23:28] website and well, the money's just flow [23:30] in. Oh, yeah. And if you want a feel for [23:33] how many electrons we're talking about [23:35] here, 3,600 electrons [23:38] per second, 1 amp. 1 amp of current, [23:42] you know, imagine like an EV and how [23:44] many amps it require. Anyway, 1 amp of [23:46] current, right? Is like 6 * 10 ^ 18. 10 [23:52] ^ [23:53] 18 electrons per second. This thing, one [23:57] junction can generate 3,600. [23:59] Whoop-de-doo. Then they talk about like [24:02] capturing the [24:04] a function of the distance and things [24:06] like that. That, you know, depth and [24:08] stuff like that. So, they're talking [24:09] about they're got some thin film [24:11] technology and stuff. Have a large [24:13] surface area to extract the current [24:15] from. They can fine-tune the thickness [24:17] of the diamond layer such that the [24:18] energetic electron will generate most of [24:20] the electrons near the collector's [24:21] surface. Can optimize the device output. [24:24] Once again, they won't tell you. There's [24:26] nothing. All we got to work from is the [24:29] 100 microwatts. And down here, like they [24:31] talk about conceptual diagram of a nano [24:35] battery. Like [24:36] these prototypes don't exist. They're [24:39] talking about a titanium charge [24:41] collector cuz they talk up the [24:42] advantages of titanium over gold and [24:44] stuff like boron doped ohmic interface [24:47] and I like like who cares? Without the [24:51] actual data, it's all just [24:53] useless marketing waffle. But they [24:55] actually admit here NDB is an emerging [24:58] nano battery technology. This is due to [25:00] the challenges in its execution of the [25:02] design. Nano batteries are direct [25:03] product of cutting-edge nano technology [25:05] where atomic material manipulation is [25:08] crucial. A crucial they need atomic [25:11] material manipulation is crucial to [25:14] generate their 100 microvolt dip size [25:18] 100 micro watt dip size battery. [25:21] They need experts to design and build [25:23] it. [25:24] Have too thicker layer of diamond and [25:26] the electrons released will recombine [25:28] become lost in the diamond. Have too [25:29] thinner layer and there's not enough [25:31] diamond to release the electrons [25:32] efficiency [25:33] efficiently. I mean, come on. This is [25:36] just all pie in the sky stuff. Yes, it [25:38] works. As always, these things work in [25:42] {quote} marks and yes, they might be 10 [25:45] 50,000 times more energy dense than [25:49] lithium-ion or some other, you know, [25:51] battery technology. But [25:53] 100 microwatts [25:55] in a package [25:57] like hundreds of like thousands of hours [26:00] to recharge a double A or triple A [26:01] battery. No, it's not going to [26:04] revolutionize anything. [26:06] It's just all [ __ ] Automotive, [26:08] consumer, things, space electronics, [26:11] medical, aviation. It's just No, these [26:15] things are there are they're no [26:17] different effectively no different to [26:19] existing beta-voltaic batteries that [26:22] you've been able to buy commercially for [26:23] a decade. By the way, I think the going [26:25] rate for one of these was like, you [26:27] know, a couple of thousand dollars for [26:28] one of these chips, which is great if [26:30] you have a very specific niche need for [26:33] a super long-term battery. These are [26:36] tritium-based ones. These don't [26:38] supposedly don't last as long as these [26:41] whiz-bang diamond ones, even though they [26:43] haven't even got prototypes of the [26:44] diamond ones yet. These are like, you [26:45] know, 40 years or [26:47] something like that, but still, you [26:49] know, great for really niche [26:50] applications, but that's where it's [26:52] going to remain. Niche applications. [26:55] It's not going to disrupt energy. Anyone [26:57] who invests money in this thing or [26:59] spreads this thinking that it's going to [27:01] change the world and oh, we're going to [27:03] have nuclear diamond batteries in our [27:05] EVs. It's just no, it's crap. Look, 100 [27:10] microwatts. It's done. It's dusted. This [27:13] is energy harvesting beta-voltaic [27:16] battery. The end. So, anyway, hope you [27:19] found that useful. So, if you did, [27:20] please give it a big a thumbs up. As [27:22] always, comment and discuss down below [27:24] and over on the EV blog forum and check [27:26] out all my other pages. I'm on LiveLeak, [27:28] I'm on Vimeo, I'm on BitTube. I'm on [27:30] Dailymotion, I'm on my own blog website. [27:32] I'm everywhere. Catch you next time.