Title of Invention

PRE-EQUILIBRIUM CHEMICAL REACTION ENERGY CONVERTER

Abstract The use of newly discovered chemical reaction products, created when reactants combine to form products on the surface of a catalyst, to generate electricity, beams of radiation or mechanical motion. The invention also provides methods to convert the products into electricity or motion. The electric generator consists of a catalyst nanocluster, nanolayer or quantum well placed on a substrate consisting of a semiconductor diode, and a semiconductor diode on the surface of the substrate near the catalyst. The device to generate mechanical motion consists of a catalyst nanocluster, nanolayer or quantum well placed on a substrate, and a hydraulic fluid in contact with the non-reaction side of the substrate, with the surfaces of both the catalyst and substrate mechanically formed to enhance the unidirectional forces on the fluid. Both devices use a fuel-oxidizer mixture brought in contact with the catalyst. The apparatus converts a substantial fraction of the reaction product energy into useful work during the brief interval before such products equilibrate with their surroundings.
Full Text PRE-EQUILIBRIUM CHEMICAL REACTION ENERGY CONVERTER
Field Of The Invention
The present invention relates to the extraction of
electrical or mechanical energy or coherent radiation from
chemical reactions occurring on the surface of a catalyst
before thermal equilibrium has been reached by the forms of
the released energy.
Background Information
Recent experimental observations have revealed clues to
various catalytic processes occurring: 1) during the 0.01
pico-second time interval during which chemical reactants form
bonds with the surface of a catalyst, causing the emission of
charge carriers, such as electrons and holes; 2) during the
picosecond time interval during which reactants adsorb and
lose energy in quantum steps after becoming trapped at a
potential well between an adsorbate and a catalyst surface,
producing electronic friction, charge carrier currents and
phonon emission; and 3) during the nanosecond and longer time
intervals during which reaction intermediates and products
radiate electromagnetic energy,, either while trapped on a

catalyst surface or immediately after escaping it. These
processes entail three energy releasing processes, namely: l)
charge carrier emission (electrons and holes), 2) phonon
emission and 3) photon emission.
The discovery of these pre-equilibrium emissions provides
new pathways to convert the high grade chemical energy
available during pre-equilibrium phases into useful work. The
term "pre-equilibrium" refers to the period, however brief,
during which the products of reactions have not yet come to
thermal equilibrium. These products include energy emissions,
such as charge carriers; high frequency phonons normally
associated with the optical branch lattice vibrations and with
acoustic branch vibrations of similar wavelength and energy;
and excited state chemical product species.
Prior to the discovery of these rapid energy emission
pathways, the energies resulting from a catalytic process,
such as the heat of adsorption and the heat of formation, were
considered to be heat associated with an equilibrium
condition. Indeed, after tens of femtoseconds, emitted charge
carriers have thermalized and after a few to hundreds of
picoseconds, emitted phonons have thermalized.
Summary Of The Invention
In an exemplary embodiment of the present invention, the
emissions of charge carriers, such as electron-hole pairs,

generated by chemical activity and reactions on or within
catalyst surfaces, clusters or nanoclusters, are converted
into electric potential. In an exemplary embodiment,
semiconductor diodes such as p-n junctions and Schottky diodes
formed between the catalyst and the semiconductors are used to
carry out the conversion. The diodes are designed to collect
ballistic charge carriers and can be Schottky diodes, pn
junction diodes or diodes formed by various combinations of
metal-semiconductor-oxide structures. The interlayer oxide
thickness is preferably Less than the particular ballistic
mean free path associated with the energy loss of the
appropriate charge carrier (e.g., hole or electron). The
diodes are placed in contact with or near the catalyst
nanolayer or nanocluster within a distance whose order of
magnitude is less than approximately the mean free path of the
appropriate ballistic charge carrier originating in the
catalyst. In one embodiment, the diode is located adjacent to
the catalyst cluster, while in a further embodiment, the diode
is located under the catalyst, as a substrate.
The charge carriers travel ballistically over distances
that can exceed the width of appropriately fabricated
semiconductor junctions, similar to a thermionic effect.
However, unlike the thermionic effect, the charge carriers in
the case of the present Invention need not have energy greater
than the work function of the material involved. The charge

carrier motion is trapped as a difference in fermi level, or
chemical potential, between either side of the junction. The
resulting voltage difference is indistinguishable from that of
a photovoltaic collector. However, the charge carrier forces
itself into the valence or conduction band and the circuit
provides a counterpart hole or electron.
The present invention also provides devices and methods
for converting the energy generated by catalytic reactions to
mechanical motion before the energy thermalizes. In an
exemplary embodiment, the converted motion is used to move a
hydraulic fluid against a resisting pressure.
Recent advances in -he art of quantum wells, atomically
smooth superlattices and nanometer scale fabrication permit a
degree of tailoring of the physical parameters to favor a
particular reaction pathway (charge carrier, phonon, photon)
or to enhance the efficiency of the energy collector.
The temperature of operation of a device in accordance
with the present invention can be as low as hundreds of
degrees Kelvin, which is much lower than the typical
operational temperatures of conventional thermophotovoltaics
and thermionic systems (1500 to 2500 Kelvin). Moreover, the
power per mass and power per volume ultimately achievable
using pre-equilibrium emissions in accordance with the present
invention exceeds that of fuel cells, conventional thermo-
photovoltaics, and conventional thermionic systems.

Furthermore, in comparison to fuel cells which require
complex ducting, the devices of the present invention allow
mixing of fuel and air in the same duct, thereby simplifying
ducting requirements.
The combination of high volume and mass power density,
simplicity, and lower temperature operation makes the methods
and devices of the present invention competitive and uniquely
useful.
Brief Description Of The_Drawing
FIG 1. shows a cross-section of an exemplary
embodiment of a device for generating electricity in
accordance with the present invention.
FIG. 2 shows a cross-section of an exemplary
embodiment of a device for converting the energy released by a
catalytic reaction into mechanical work.
FIG. 3 shows a cross-section of an exemplary
embodiment of a device for generating electricity
piezoelectrically.
FIG. 4 shows an exemplary embodiment of an
arrangement for generating electricity or radiation beams in
accordance with the present invention.
Detailed Description

FIG. 1 shows a cross-sectional view of an exemplary
embodiment of a device in accordance with the present
invention. The device cf FIG. 1, includes a catalyst 105
which is arranged on a top surface of the device to come into
contact with oxidizer molecules 103 and fuel molecules 102.
In the exemplary embodiment of FIG. 1, the catalyst 105 can be
comprised of platinum or palladium, the oxidizer 103 can be
comprised of air and the fuel 102 can be comprised of hydrogen
or a reactant hydrocarbon such as methanol or ethanol.
Exhaust molecules 104 result from the catalyzed reaction.
The exemplary device: of FIG. 1 comprises a pair of
Schottky diodes which act as charge carrier collectors, with
one diode 113 being arranged on the top surface of the device,
adjacent to the catalyst 105 (the "adjacent surface diode")
and the other diode 109 being arranged in the substrate 108,
below the catalyst (the "substrate diode"). An insulating
layer 111 is arranged between the adjacent surface diode 113
and the substrate 108, as shown. The diodes 109 and 113
preferably comprise a bipolar semiconductor material such as
InGaAsSb with a composition chosen to optimize the chosen
operating conditions. For example, the second harmonic of a
CO stretch vibration on a catalyst surface at 2340 per cm
energies gives a photon energy of 0.58 eV. (This matches the
0.53 eV band gap of a recently developed InGaAsSb diode
described in G.W. Charache et al., "InGaAsSb

thermophotovoltaic diode: Physics evaluation," Journal of
Applied Physics, Vol. 8E , No. 4, Feb. 1999). The diodes 109
and 113 preferably have relatively low barrier heights, such
as 0.05 to 0.4 volts.
The substrate diode 109 should be forward biased
sufficiently (e.g., up to 3 volts) to raise its conduction and
valence bands above the fermi level of the catalyst 105 so as
to match the energy levels of the adsorbed reactants on the
catalyst surface, such at; oxygen or hydrocarbon free radicals.
This induces resonant tunneling of energy into the substrate
diode 109 by photons. The dimension of the oxide barrier or
the depletion region should be kept to less than the ballistic
transport dimension, which is on the order of 10 nanometers.
A metal such as Mg, Sb, Al,, Ag, Sn Cu or Ni may be used
to form an interlayer 106 between the catalyst 105 and the
semiconductor of the substrate diode 109. The interlayer 106
serves to provide a lattice parameter match between the
catalyst material and the substrate, which in turn provides a
smooth and planar interface surface with which to construct a
quantum well structure consisting of the catalyst, the vacuum
above and the interlayer below. A quantum well structure with
smooth interfaces alters the density of electron states in the
directions toward the substrate and toward the vacuum, so as
to enhance the number of electrons with the desired energy.
The thickness of the catalyst and the interlayer should be

small enough to permit ballistic transport of charge carriers.
This dimension is typically less than 20 nanometers. Quantum
well structures with thickness less than 0.5 nanometer are
possible in the present state of the art. The quantum well
structure may be constructed as an island, like a pancake on a
surface (also referred to as a "quantum dot").
The device of FIG. 1 may also include a non-conducting
layer 107 arranged between the substrate diode 109 and the
catalyst 105. The layer 107, which can be comprised of an
oxide, permits forward-biasing of the diode 109 without a
significant increase in the forward current. The layer 107
provides a barrier against such forward current. An optional
oxide 114 barrier may also be arranged on the surface of the
device between the catalyst 105 and the surface diode 113.
Electrical contacts 101, 110 and 112 are arranged as
shown in FIG. 1. Contacts 101 and 110 serve as electrical
output leads for the substrate diode. Contacts 101 and 112
are the electrical output leads for the surface diode.
In the device of FIG. 1, the catalyst layer 105 may
comprise a quantum well structure (including quantum dots)
having a thickness typically less than 20 ran and being
sufficiently small so as to alter the density of electron
states in the -catalyst to favor the production of
substantially monoenergetic holes or electrons. The substrate
diode 109 and the catalyst 105 may be separated by an

interlayer 106 of metal, that permits matching the lattice
parameters of the catalyst to this interlayer. The catalyst
105 and interlayer 106 comprise the quantum well . The
interlayer 106 must be sufficiently thin so as to permit non-
energy changing electron transport into the diode. The
thickness of the interlayer 106 should be preferably less than
20 nanometers.
In an exemplary embodiment of a device in accordance with
the present invention, the substrate diode 109 comprises an n-
type direct band gap semiconductor with a band gap chosen to
favor the emission of energetic electrons.
In a further exemplary embodiment, the thickness or
cluster size (if arranged in clusters) of the catalyst layer
105 is sufficiently small so as to permit the appearance of
band gaps, discrete electron states and catalyst properties
unlike the same material in bulk. In this case, the catalyst
105 can be comprised, preferably, of gold, silver, copper, or
nickel and be arranged as3 monolayer, 200 atom clusters.
FIG. 2 shows an exetnplary embodiment of a device in
accordance with the present invention in which the emissions
of phonons generated by adsorbing and bonding reactions on or
within catalyst surfaces clusters or nano-structures are
converted into hydraulic fluid pressure.
In accordance with the present invention, pressures
generated by phonons directed - into a catalyst body on a first

side of the catalyst body form a phonon wave which can be
guided by the geometry of the catalyst (or. substrate upon
which the catalyst may be situated) so that the phonons travel
to the other side of the substrate and impart a pressure onto
a fluid. The thickness of this travel should be less than the
mean distance over which the direction of the phonon remains
substantially unperturbed. The phonons arrive at an angle (a
"grazing" angle) such that the directional and asymmetric
pressure of the arriving phonons appears as wave motion on the
other side of the catalyst body which pushes against a fluid
such as a liquid metal or sacrificial interface, causing it to
move in a direction parallel to the bottom surface. An
apparent negative coefficient of friction between the wall and
the fluid is exhibited due to the wave motion or directed
impulses along the surface of the bottom of the device.
The exemplary device comprises a substrate 202 with top
and bottom surfaces having a saw-tooth pattern, as shown in
the cross-sectional view of FIG. 2. The bottom surface is in
contact with a hydraulic fluid 204. As shown in FIG. 2, the
substrate can be thought of as comprising a plurality of sub-
structures 200 having rectangular cross-sections and arranged
adjacent to each other at an angle with respect to the
hydraulic fluid 204.
At the top surface of the substrate, each sub-structure
200 includes a layer 2C1 comprising a catalyst. On an exposed


side surface between adjacent sub-structures, each sub-
structure 200 includes a layer 202 of material which is inert
with respect to the catalyst and the reactants. The body of
each sub-structure is conprised of a substrate 203, which also
acts as a phonon waveguide. Platinum can be used for the
catalyst layer 201 and for the substrate 203 with air as the
oxidizer, ethanol or methanol as the hydrocarbon reactant fuel
and water or mercury as the hydraulic fluid 204. The
hydraulic fluid can also serve as a coolant for the device,
thereby permitting high power density operation.
The catalyst 201 and substrate 203 may be comprised of
the same material, e.g., platinum. Other substrate materials
may be used based on structural considerations,
manufacturability and/or impedance matching so as to maximize
the propagation of the phonon motion into the hydraulic fluid.
The thickness of the platinum catalyst layer 201 and
substrate 203 should be less than the energy-changing mean
free path of optical branch phonons or high frequency acoustic
branch phonons, which is at least of order 10 nanometers and
can be as large as one micron.
Nanofabrication methods can be used to form the sawtooth
patterns on the surfaces of the substrate 202, with the
dimension of as unit of such pattern being as large as 1
micron.

By depositing the inert layers 202 as shown, e.g., on the
right-facing facets of the saw-tooth pattern of the top
surface, a preferential direction is thereby established for
reactions and thus for phonon propagation, as indicated by the
arrow in FIG. 2.
Acoustic, ultrasonic or gigahertz acoustic Rayleigh waves
on the catalyst side can be used to stimulate the reaction
rate and synchronize the emission of phonons. The waves
increase the magnitude of. the phonon emission and cause
coherent emission, greatly enhancing both the peak and average
power.
In a further embodiment, a thin layer or layers of
material are arranged between the substrate and the fluid.
These layers are comprised of materials having acoustic
impedances between that cf the substrate 202 and the hydraulic
fluid 204, so as to maxirrize the transmission of momentum into
the hydraulic fluid and minimize reflections back into the
substrate 2 04. The material should be selected so that the
bulk modulus and phonon propagation properties of the material
cause the phonons emerging from the substrate to be
transmittied substantially into the fluid with minimal
reflection and energy loss.
In a further embodiment of a device in accordance with
the present invention, the emissions of phonons generated by
catalytic reactions are converted into electrical current by

piezo-electric effects within materials as the phonons impact
the materials. An exempLary embodiment of such a device is
shown in FIG. 3.
The exemplary device of FIG. 3 comprises a catalyst layer
301 arranged on a piezo-electric element 303, which is in turn
arranged on a supporting substrate 304. The catalyst layer
301 can be implemented as a nanocluster, nanolayer or quantum
well. Electrical leads 3 02 are provided at opposite ends of
the piezo-electric element 303 across which a potential is
developed, in accordance with the present invention. In the
exemplary embodiment of FIG. 3, the catalyst layer 301
comprises platinum, with air as the oxidizer and ethanol or
methanol as the hydrocarbon reactant fuel. The piezo-electric
element 303 can comprise any piezomaterial, including
semiconductors that are not normally piezoelectric, such as
InGaAsSb. The lattice mismatch between the semiconductor and
the platinum produces a strain, commonly called a deformation
potential which induces piezoelectric properties in
semiconductors, or ferroelectric or piezoelectric materials
with a high nonlinearity such as (Ba, Sr)TiO3 thin films,
AlxGa1-xAs/GaAs and strained layer InGaAs/GaAs (lll)B quantum
well p-i-n structures.
Where the- piezoelectric element 3 03 is comprised of a
semiconductor, the semiconductor becomes a diode element that

converts photons into electricity, collects electrons as
electricity, and converts phonons into electricity.
In the exemplary embodiment of FIG. 3, as the reactants
interact with the catalytic layer 301, phonons generated by
the reactions are conducted into the piezoelectric material
303. As a result, a potential is induced in the piezoelectric
material 303 at the electrical contacts 302.
The geometry of the substrate 303 is preferably such as
to focus phonons so as to enhance the nonlinearity of the
piezoelectric element 303. This results in self-rectification
of the high frequency phonons. In an exemplary embodiment,
the piezoelectric element 303 is preferably curved and shaped
like a lens or concentrating reflector so as to focus the
phonons generated by the catalyst on to the piezoelectric
material. The focusing of the phonons causes large amplitude
atomic motions at the focus. The atomic motions induced by
this focusing cause the piezoelectric material to become
nonlinear, causing non-linear responses such as the generation
of electricity in the material at the focus. This in turn
results in the piezo-material becoming a rectifier of the
phonon-induced high frequency current.
Acoustic, ultrasonic or gigahertz acoustic Rayleigh waves
can be used on the catalyst side of the exemplary device of
FIG. 3 to stimulate the reaction rate and synchronize the
emission of phonons, to enhance the magnitude of the phonon

emission and to cause coherent emission, greatly enhancing
both the peak and average power delivered to the piezoelectric
material 303. Acoustic Rayleigh waves accelerate oxidation
reactions on platinum catalyst surfaces. Surface acoustic
waves can be generated on the surface of the catalyst 3 01
using a generator (not shown) . Such waves may have acoustic,
ultrasonic or gigahertz frequencies. The Rayleigh waves
induce reactions so as to synchronize the reactions, which in
turn synchronizes the emission of phonons. The result is a
pulsing bunching of the reactions, which enhances the power
delivered to the piezoelectric material 303.
The frequency of operation of the device of FIG. 3 is
preferably in the GHz range and lower so that rectification of
the alternating currents produced by the piezoelectric
material 303 can be achieved with conventional means, such as
with semiconductor diodes.
In a further exemplary embodiment of the present
invention, electromagnetic radiation, such as infrared photons
emitted by excited state products such as highly vibrationally
excited radicals and final product molecules, is converted
into electricity photovoltaically. Stimulated emission of
radiation is used to extract the energy from the excited state
products, such as highly vibrationally excited radical and
reaction product molecules both on the catalyst surface and
desorbing from it. The extracted energy appears in the form

of a coherent beam or a super-radiant beam of infra-red or
optical energy. The frequencies of the radiation correspond
to fundamental (vibration quantum number change of 1) or
overtones (vibration quantum number change 2 or greater) of
the normal mode vibration frequencies of the reactants.
Several different frequencies may be extracted simultaneously
in this invention. While; the resulting coherent beam is
useful in its own right, this high intensity beam can also be
photovoltaically converted into electricity. In accordance
with the present invention, such emissions are created by
reactions on catalyst surfaces, and are accelerated by the use
of optical cavities. FIG. 4 shows an exemplary embodiment of
an electric generator for performing such a conversion.
The device of FIG. 4 comprises one or more substrates 401
upon which a catalyst 402 is arranged in a plurality of
islands, nanoclusters, quantum well clusters or quantum dots.
The catalyst clusters are sufficiently spaced apart (e.g.,
tens of nanometers or more) and the substrate is made
sufficiently thin (e.g., Less than a centimeter total optical
thickness), so that IR absorbtion is mitigated at the
frequencies of specie emission. The assembly of catalyst
clusters on the substrates 401 is substantially transparent to
the reaction radiations. The catalyst 402 is preferably
platinum or palladium. The device preferably comprises a

plurality of substrates 401 stacked so as to permit a volume
of reactions.
The catalyst-substrate stack 401/402 is enclosed in an
optical cavity having a highly reflective element 403 and a
less reflective element 404 arranged as shown in FIG. 4. The
optical cavity and the catalyst-substrate stack 401/402 are
preferably resonant to the reaction radiations or their
overtones. The optical cavity can be used to stimulate
overtone radiation, i.e., multipole radiation where the change
in quantum number is 2 or more, to increase the energy of the
radiation. The optical cavity preferably has multiple
frequencies, as in a Fabrey-Perot cavity, that are tuned to
overtones of the specie frequencies.
A fuel 407, such as hydrogen, ethanol or methanol and an
oxidizer 408, such as air, are introduced into the optical
cavity where they interact with the catalyst-substrate stack
401/402. Lean mixtures of fuel can be used so as to minimize
resonant transfer, exchange or decay of excited state
vibrational energy to other specie of the same chemical makeup
in the exhaust stream, during the time these species are in
the optical cavity and the photovoltaic converter 405 collects
the radiation and converts it into electricity.
A stimulated emission initiator and synchronizer device
412 is used to initiate and synchronize the emissions in the
optical cavity. The device 412 can be a commonly available

The chemical reactants on the catalyst surface permit
overtone transitions because they are part of a "ladder" of
transitions and strongly polarized on the catalyst surface,
which permits all the transitions to have non-zero dipole
radiation transition matrix elements. Also, the reactants
have no rotational smearing associated with free molecules in
a gas because they are attached to the surface and can not
rotate. These features permit a near monochromatic overtone
light amplification by stimulated emission of radiation.
The electromagnetic energy radiated by the stimulation of
species, as in the embodiment of FIG. 4, can be formed into
high brightness, quasi-monochromatic, poly-chromatic
radiations or coherent beams.
In each of the above described embodiments which include
photovoltaic semiconductors, the catalyst is preferably
operated at a high surface power density, e.g., in excess of
10 watts per square centimeter or with a peak surface power
density of at least one watt per square centimeter, to enhance
the efficiency of the photovoltaic semiconductors.

What is claimed is:
1. A method of moving an object, comprising:
providing a catalyst on a substrate;
placing reactants in contact with the catalyst, the
reactants interacting with the catalyst and generating
phonons, wherein the phonons propagate into the substrate away
from the catalyst; and
directing the phonons towards the object.
2. The method of claim 1, wherein the catalyst is arranged
in a plurality of clusters.
3. The method of claim 1, wherein the object is a fluid in
contact with a surface of the substrate.
4. A method of generating electricity comprising:
forming species in highly excited states on a catalyst
thereby radiating electromagnetic energy; and
converting the electromagnetic energy into electricity
with a photovoltaic collector.
5. The method of claim 4, wherein the species includes at
least one of an excited state radical and an exhaust product.

6. The method of claim 4, comprising stimulating and
accelerating a reaction emission rate using an optical cavity.
7. The method of claim 4, comprising stimulating an overtone
radiation using an optical cavity.
8. The method of claim 7, wherein the overtone radiation
includes multipole rad:.ation with a change in quantum number
of two or more.
9. The method of claim 4, wherein the catalyst operates at a
peak surface power density greater than one watt per square
centimeter.
10. A method of generating electromagnetic energy comprising:
forming species :.n highly excited states on a catalyst;
and
stimulating the species to emit electromagnetic
radiation.
11. A device for generating electricity, comprising:
a catalyst, and
a substrate, wherein the catalyst is arranged on the
substrate and the substrate includes a substrate diode to
receive charge carriers from the catalyst,

wherein upon introducing a fuel and an oxidizer in
contact with the catalyst, charge carriers are emitted by the
catalyst and an electrical potential is developed across the
substrate diode.
12. The device of claim 11 comprising a non-conducting layer
arranged between the substrate diode and the catalyst, wherein
the non-conducting layer permits control over a forward-bias
and forward current characteristic of the substrate diode.
13. The device of claim 11 comprising a surface diode, the
surface diode being arranged on a reactant side of the
catalyst to receive and capture electrons.
14. The device of claim 11, wherein the substrate diode is
forward biased so as to raise its conduction and valence bands
above a fermi level of the catalyst so as to match energy
levels of the adsorbed species.
15. The device of claim 11, wherein the substrate diode
comprises an InGaAsSb semiconductor.
16. The device of claim 13, wherein the surface diode
comprises an InGaAsSb semiconductor.

17. The device of claim 11, wherein the fuel includes at
least one of ethanol, methanol and hydrogen.
18. The device of claim 11, wherein the substrate diode is a
Schottky diode having a band gap larger than an energy of
reactions on a surface of the catalyst.
19. The device of claim 13, wherein the surface diode is a
Schottky diode having a band gap larger than a bond energy or
a reaction energy.
20. The device of claim 11, wherein the substrate diode is a
Schottky diode having a barrier height in a range of 0.05 to
0.4 volts.
21. The device of claim 13, wherein the surface diode is a
Schottky diode having a barrier height in a range of 0.05 to
0.4 volts.
22. The device of claim 11,, wherein the catalyst includes at
least one of platinum and palladium.
23. The device of claim 11, wherein the catalyst includes at
least one of a quantum well and a quantum dot having a
thickness sufficiently small so as to alter a density of

electron states in the catalyst to favor the production of
substantially monoenergetic holes or electrons.
24. The device of claim 11, comprising a layer of metal
arranged between the substrate diode and the catalyst, wherein
the layer of metal matches a catalyst lattice parameter and
allows the metal and catalyst layers to be formed as a quantum
well.
25. The device of claim 12, wherein the catalyst has a
thickness of one nanometer or less.
26. The device of claim 11, wherein the substrate diode
includes an n-type direct band gap semiconductor having a band
gap which favors emission of energetic electrons.
27. The device of claim 11, wherein a dimension of the
catalyst is sufficiently small so as to have properties unlike
the same material in bulk.
28. The device of claim 11, wherein the catalyst includes at
least one of gold, silver, copper, and nickel.
29. The device of claim 11 comprising a coolant on a bottom
surface of the device.

30. The device of claim 11, wherein the catalyst operates at
a peak surface power density greater than one watt per square
centimeter.
31. A device for moving a fluid comprising:
a catalyst, wherein reactants impinging on a surface of
the catalyst cause phonons to be generated;
a substrate, wherein the catalyst is arranged on a top
side of the substrate; and
a hydraulic fluid, wherein the hydraulic fluid is in
contact with a bottom side of the substrate,
wherein the substrate acts as an acoustic waveguide for
the phonons, conveying the phonons to the bottom side of the
substrate so as to move the hydraulic fluid in a preferred
direction.
32. The device of claim 31, wherein the top side of the
substrate has a cross section with a sawtooth pattern.
33. The device of claim 31, wherein the catalyst and an inert
material are arranged on portions of the top side of the
substrate so as to control the generation of phonons.

34. The device of claim 32, wherein the catalyst and an inert
material are arranged on alternating facets of the sawtooth
pattern.
35. The device of claim 31, wherein the bottom side of the
substrate has a cross section with a sawtooth pattern.
36. The device of claim 31, wherein a wave including at least
one of an acoustic, ultrasonic: and a gigahertz acoustic
Rayleigh wave is applied to the catalyst to stimulate a
reaction rate and synchronize the phonon emission, thereby
enhancing a magnitude of the phonon emission and causing
coherent emission.
37. The device of claim 31, comprising a layer of material
arranged between the substrate and the fluid, wherein the
material causes the phonons to be transmitted from the
substrate substantially into the fluid.
38. A device for generating electricity comprising:
a catalyst; and
a substrate, wherein the catalyst is arranged on a
surface of the substrate and the substrate includes a
piezoelectric element,

wherein phonons generated upon interaction of the
catalyst with reactants travel through the piezoelectric
element which develops an electrical potential as a result.
39. The device of claim 38, wherein the catalyst includes at
least one of a nanocluster, nanolayer and a quantum well.
40. The device of claim 38, wherein the piezoelectric element
includes a semiconductor having piezoelectric properties
caused by a lattice mismatch between the semiconductor and the
catalyst.
41. The device of claim 38, wherein the substrate focuses
phonons so as to enhance a non-linear responses.
42. The device of claim 38, wherein a wave including at least
one of an acoustic, ultrasonic and a gigahertz acoustic
Rayleigh wave is applied to the catalyst to stimulate a
reaction rate and synchronize the phonon emission, thereby
enhancing a magnitude of the phonon emission and causing
coherent emission.
43. A device for generating electricity comprising:
a catalyst;

a substrate, wherein the catalyst is arranged on the
substrate; and a
a photovoltaic converter, the photovoltaic converter
being located anywhere visible to radiation emitted by
reactions involving the catalyst.
44. The device of claim 43, wherein the catalyst includes at
least one of a nanocluster, a nanolayer and a quantum well.
45. The device of claim 43 comprising an optical cavity,
wherein the catalyst is, located in the optical cavity and
wherein the optical cavity is tuned to a frequency of an
excited state species within the cavity.
46. The device of claim 43, wherein the optical cavity has
multiple frequencies that are tuned to overtones of the specie
frequencies and wherein the optical cavity stimulates overtone
transitions.
47. The device of claim 46, wherein the optical cavity is a
Fabrey-Perot cavity.
48. The device of claim 45 comprising an optical oscillator
for stimulating emissions in the optical cavity.

49. The device of claim 43, wherein the catalyst includes at
least one of an island, nanocluster, quantum well cluster and
a quantum dot and the substrate includes a plurality of
substrates arranged in a stack, thereby forming a catalyst-
substrate stack, wherein the catalyst-substrate stack is tuned
to at least one of a frequency or overtone thereof of the
radiation.
50. The device of claim 43, comprising cooling means for
cooling the photovoltaic converter.
51. The method of claim 4 comprising storing the electrical
energy in at least one of a capacitor, a super-capacitor and a
battery.
52. The device of claim 11 comprising an electrical storage
device, the electrical storage device being coupled to the
substrate diode, wherein the electrical storage device
includes at least one of a capacitor, a super-capacitor and a
battery.
53. The device of claim 38 comprising:
electrical contacts, the electrical contacts being
arranged on the piezoelectric element, wherein the electrical
potential appears at the electrical contacts; and

an electrical storage device, the electrical storage
device being coupled to the electrical contacts, wherein the
electrical storage device includes at least one of a
capacitor, a super-capacitor and a battery.
54. The device of claim 43 comprising an electrical storage
device, the electrical storage device being coupled to the
photovoltaic converter, wherein the electrical storage device
includes at least one of a capacitor, a super-capacitor and a
battery.

The use of newly discovered chemical reaction
products, created when reactants combine to form products on
the surface of a catalyst, to generate electricity, beams of
radiation or mechanical motion. The invention also provides
methods to convert the products into electricity or motion.
The electric generator consists of a catalyst nanocluster,
nanolayer or quantum well placed on a substrate consisting of
a semiconductor diode, and a semiconductor diode on the
surface of the substrate near the catalyst. The device to
generate mechanical motion consists of a catalyst nanocluster,
nanolayer or quantum well placed on a substrate, and a
hydraulic fluid in contact with the non-reaction side of the
substrate, with the surfaces of both the catalyst and
substrate mechanically formed to enhance the unidirectional
forces on the fluid. Both devices use a fuel-oxidizer mixture
brought in contact with the catalyst. The apparatus converts
a substantial fraction of the reaction product energy into
useful work during the brief interval before such products
equilibrate with their surroundings.

Documents:

IN-PCT-2001-1162-KOL-CORRESPONDENCE.pdf

IN-PCT-2001-1162-KOL-FORM 27.pdf

in-pct-2001-1162-kol-granted-abstract.pdf

in-pct-2001-1162-kol-granted-assignment.pdf

in-pct-2001-1162-kol-granted-claims.pdf

in-pct-2001-1162-kol-granted-correspondence.pdf

in-pct-2001-1162-kol-granted-description (complete).pdf

in-pct-2001-1162-kol-granted-drawings.pdf

in-pct-2001-1162-kol-granted-examination report.pdf

in-pct-2001-1162-kol-granted-form 1.pdf

in-pct-2001-1162-kol-granted-form 13.pdf

in-pct-2001-1162-kol-granted-form 18.pdf

in-pct-2001-1162-kol-granted-form 2.pdf

in-pct-2001-1162-kol-granted-form 3.pdf

in-pct-2001-1162-kol-granted-form 5.pdf

in-pct-2001-1162-kol-granted-pa.pdf

in-pct-2001-1162-kol-granted-reply to examination report.pdf

in-pct-2001-1162-kol-granted-specification.pdf

in-pct-2001-1162-kol-granted-translated copy of priority document.pdf


Patent Number 228775
Indian Patent Application Number IN/PCT/2001/1162/KOL
PG Journal Number 07/2009
Publication Date 13-Feb-2009
Grant Date 10-Feb-2009
Date of Filing 07-Nov-2001
Name of Patentee NEOKISMET L. L. C.
Applicant Address SUITE 1350, 456 MONTGOMERY STREET, SAN FRANCISCO, CA
Inventors:
# Inventor's Name Inventor's Address
1 ZUPPERO ANTHONY C 6854 EAST SUNNYSIDE ROAD IDAHO FALLS, ID 83406
2 GIDWANI JAWAHAR M 2335 LEAVENWORTH, SAN FRANCISCO CA 94133
PCT International Classification Number H01L 31/00
PCT International Application Number PCT/US2000/11119
PCT International Filing date 2000-04-25
PCT Conventions:
# PCT Application Number Date of Convention Priority Country
1 09/304,979 1999-05-04 U.S.A.