Nuclear batteries

An electrical energy source, comprising tritium incorporated with an amorphous semiconductor matrix in the form of a body of amorphous semiconductor material, said body having a p-type conductivity region and an n-type conductivity region and a tritiated i-type conductivity region therebetween forming p-i-n junction, wherein said i-type conductivity region is tritiated and said p- and n-type conductivity regions are optionally tritiated by chemical bonding between tritium and the amorphous semiconductor material, and means for electrically connecting said n-type and p-type regions to a load circuit.

An electrical energy source, comprising a semiconductor matrix having a p-type conductivity region and an n-type conductivity region of a crystalline semiconductor material, an i-type conductivity region between them forming a p-i-n junction, said i-type region consisting essentially of a tritiated amorphous semiconductor, and means for electrically connecting said n-type and p-type regions to a load circuit.

An electrical energy source comprising a p-i-n junction formed by p-type, n-type and i-type conductivity regions each consisting of a tritiated microcrystalline semiconductor material and means for connecting said n-type and p-type regions to a load circuit.

An electrical energy source, comprising a matrix formed of a p-type conductivity region, an n-type conductivity region and an i-type conductivity region between them forming a p-i-n junction, each of said p-type and n-type conductivity regions being of a material selected from the group consisting of crystalline, microcrystalline and amorphous semiconductors, the p- and n-type conductivity regions being enhanced by the presence of appropriate metal films, and said i-type conductivity region being formed of a tritiated semiconductor material selected from the group consisting of tritiated amorphous semiconductors and tritiated micro-crystalline semiconductors, and means for connecting said n-type and p-type regions to a load circuit.