<ul><li>Scientists have developed a new type of photovoltaic battery that runs on the energy from nuclear waste, using a scintillator crystal to transform gamma rays into electricity.</li><li>The battery can produce more than a microwatt of power and has the potential to power microelectronic devices such as microchips.</li><li>Previous attempts at nuclear waste batteries had low power output and conversion efficiency, but the new battery has already produced 1.5 μW and there is potential for improvement.</li><li>However, challenges remain in scaling up the technology and finding radiation-hard materials for the battery.</li></ul>

Photovoltaic battery runs on nuclear waste

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