Fuel cells developed at our institute are to be used as power sources for portable electronics or autonomous measurement devices. Based on silicon substrates and manufactured by means of microstructuring and thin layer processes these are applicable in all fields where a small size is preferred over a high power output.

Also components for a direct methanol fuel cell (DMFC) i.e. polymer membranes with a low permeability for methanol are developed. Microporous silicon as current collector and gas diffusion layer facilitates the use of a very thin polymer membrane. Plasma-polymerized membranes can be deposited in virtually any desired thickness. Gaseous C4F8 and H2O as well as aromatic hydrocarbons are used. Catalyst layers formed by sputtering techniques show a high specific surface due to cluster formation.

The figure 2 shows a porous substrate on which the ion conductive polymer layer is deposited in a CVD process. Other micro systems can be build upon the same silicon substrate for which the micro fuel cell serves as a power supply.

Contact:

Dipl.-Ing.Florian Hoffmann