Converting Radiation to Electricity

A new method for converting radiation directly to electricity is being explored as a replacement to thermoelectric-based nuclear batteries traditionally used in spacecraft. The material currently being tested is composed of carbon nanotubes, gold, and lithium hydride, making it potentially expensive but interesting nevertheless.

Other potential applications for this material would be as a replacement or complement to steam turbines in nuclear reactors or as a nuclear waste-based power generation system. The actual efficiency of this technology is still in question, but it is allegedly twenty times more efficient than thermoelectrics when used in the same application.