CN1147019C

CN1147019C - Dry chemical battery

Info

Publication number: CN1147019C
Application number: CNB991175034A
Authority: CN
Inventors: 笠野宏之
Original assignee: TA ELECTRONICS APPLIED INDUSTRIES Ltd
Current assignee: TA ELECTRONICS APPLIED INDUSTRIES Ltd
Priority date: 1999-08-06
Filing date: 1999-08-06
Publication date: 2004-04-21
Anticipated expiration: 2019-08-06
Also published as: CN1283880A

Abstract

The present invention relates to a dry chemical battery composed of a cathode made of an n-shaped semiconductor of which the carrier concentration is from 5*10<16> to 2*10<19> cm<-3>, an anode made of metal of which the electron affinity is higher than that of the cathode, and a dielectric medium made of the skin of an organism. The dry chemical battery is easy to improve the safety to a human body and work efficiency.

Description

Dry chemical battery

Technical Field

The present invention relates to a dry chemical battery, a member for the dry chemical battery, and a device equipped with the dry chemical battery. More particularly, the present invention relates to a dry chemical battery that does not require a dielectric to be provided in advance, a member for the dry chemical battery, and a device provided with the dry chemical battery.

Background

A primary battery (hereinafter, referred to as a "dry battery") which is manufactured so as to be convenient for handling and carrying by a suitable method without causing a dielectric solution of the battery to flow is widely used as a power source for electronic devices, and particularly, a power source which is essential in recent years with the spread of portable electronic devices.

Manganese batteries, alkaline batteries, mercury batteries, silver oxide batteries, lithium batteries, and the like are known as dry chemical batteries. These conventional dry chemical cells are all pre-equipped with a dielectric solution or solid dielectric.

The dielectric solution used in dry chemical batteries such as manganese dry batteries, alkaline dry batteries, mercury batteries, and silver oxide batteries is a strongly alkaline or acidic solution. Therefore, in dry chemical batteries using such a dielectric solution, the dielectric solution is sealed in a container by a certain means so as not to leak out.

In addition, lithium iodide or the like, which is highly irritating to living bodies, is used as a solid dielectric for dry chemical batteries such as lithium batteries. Therefore, even in a lithium battery or the like, the solid dielectric is sealed in a certain container.

However, even if a dry chemical battery using either a dielectric solution or a solid dielectric is used, it is difficult to prevent the dielectric solution or the solid dielectric from leaking to the outside for a long period of time.

Most portable electronic devices are used in a state of being in contact with a human body. Among them, medical devices such as pacemakers, information devices such as earphone-type radios, hearing aids, electronic watches, and the like are generally used in a state of being in contact with the skin. Therefore, a power supply for portable electronic devices is required to be safe to the human body. Dry chemical batteries, in which there is a possibility that a dielectric solution or a solid dielectric may leak to the outside, cannot be considered satisfactory for use as a power source for portable electronic devices used in a state of being in contact with the skin of a human body.

Safety is sought for dry-type chemical batteries as described above. On the other hand, the use of the battery as a power source of a portable electronic device is required to be more inexpensive.

However, as a practical problem, it is also difficult to provide a dry chemical battery with high safety at a lower price.

If the dry chemical battery is replaced by a solar battery, the safety to the human body can be further improved. Since the power consumption of, for example, an electronic timepiece can now be reduced to the order of 1 μ W, even if the area of light is 1cm²Solar cells of the order of magnitude can also be fully utilized as power sources.

However, since the solar cell generates power only when it is irradiated with light, it cannot be used as a power source at night or in a dark place. I.e. the working efficiency is low. Therefore, the solar cell is generally used together with a spare built-in secondary battery.

Disclosure of Invention

The invention aims to provide a dry chemical battery, a member for the dry chemical battery and a device equipped with the dry chemical battery, which are easy to improve the safety to human bodies and the working efficiency.

According to an aspect of the present invention, there is provideda dry chemical battery including: the carrier concentration at room temperature is 5X 10¹⁶-2×10¹⁹cm^-3A cathode made of the n-type semiconductor of (1); an anode made of a metal having a higher electron affinity than the cathode; and a support member for supporting the cathode and the anode so that the cathode and the anode are in contact with the skin of the living body in a state where they are spaced apart from each other.

A dry chemical battery is formed by contacting a metal and a specific n-type semiconductor with the skin of a living body in a state where the metal and the specific n-type semiconductor are spatially separated from each other, wherein the metal serves as an anode, the n-type semiconductor serves as a cathode, and the skin (including subcutaneous tissue, the same applies hereinafter) serves as a dielectric.

Since such a dry chemical battery uses the skin of a living body as a dielectric, the dielectric itself is harmless to the living body. Further, even the metal and the n-type semiconductor can be easily selected so as not to be harmful to a living body.

The dry chemical battery may be connected to an external circuit having a protective resistor (a resistor for preventing an excessive current from flowing). By using the protective resistor, damage due to current flow through the skin (including subcutaneous tissue, the same applies hereinafter) can be easily prevented.

In addition, since the dry chemical battery described above uses the skin of a living body as a dielectric, electricity is generated regardless of time and place as soon as the anode and the cathode are in contact with the skin of the living body.

That is, safety to the human body and operation efficiency are easily improved by the dry type chemical battery.

Drawings

Fig. 1 is a schematic diagram of a dry chemical battery according to an embodiment of the present invention.

Fig. 2 is a diagram showing embodiment 1 of the present invention.

Fig. 3 is a diagram showing an example of a circuit for extracting power from the apparatus shown in fig. 2.

Fig. 4 is a circuit configuration diagram showing a device according to embodiment 2 of the present invention.

Fig. 5(a) is a front view showing an example of an electronic watch having the circuit configuration shown in fig. 4. Fig. 5(b) is a rear view showing the electronic timepiece.

Fig. 6 is a sectional view showing embodiment 3 of the present invention.

Among them, 1, 11, 21, 42 … cathode, 2, 12, 22, 43 … anode, 3, 13, 23, 44 … skin, 10 … chip resistor, 10C … resistor element, 15 … load, 16a, 16b … lead, 26 … external load circuit, 25 … driving circuit, 26 … built-in secondary battery, 27 … capacitor, 30 … electronic watch, 31 … package, 40 … device, 41 … supporting member, I … circuit current, Ii … ion current.

Detailed Description

Fig. 1 is a diagram for explaining the operating principle of a dry chemical battery according to an embodiment of the present invention. As shown in fig. 1, a cathode 1 made of an n-type semiconductor and an anode made of a metal having a higher electron affinity than that of the cathode 1 are in contact with the skin of a living body in a state of being spaced apart from each other. If these cathode 1 and anode 2 are electrically contacted through the wire 4, the following two changes (i) to (ii)are produced on the cathode.

(i) In the cathode 1 due to the difference in electron affinity between the cathode 1 and the anode 2Free electron e^-And moves to the anode 2 via the lead 4. As a result, excessive positive holes h are generated in the cathode 1⁺. (ii) On the side of the contact surface of the cathode 1 with the skin 3, a schottky barrier is formed to support the thermal equilibrium state. Accordingly, a carrier depletion layer is formed in a region 1a within the cathode 1, which is several micrometers from the interface with the skin 3. In this region 1a, so-called 1 × 10 is generated³-1×10⁵A strong internal voltage of V/cm (hereinafter, the aforementioned region is referred to as a 'high electric field region 1 a').

Free electrons e moving from the cathode 1 to the anode 2 by the change of the above (i)^-The excess is directly discharged to the skin 3 in order to support the electrical neutrality of the anode 2.

On the other hand, the internal electric field generated in the high electric field region 1a by the change of the above (ii) acts to generate positive holes h in the cathode 1⁺Is discharged to the skin 3 side.

As a result of these, in the state shown in FIG. 1, positive holes h⁺Injected into the skin 3 from the cathode 1, electrons e^-From the anode 2 into the skin 3.

Because various ions exist in the skin 3, an oxidation reaction and a reduction reaction are continuously generated immediately under the cathode 1 and immediately under the anode 2, respectively.

The oxidation-reduction reaction is described by taking as an example iron ions present in a large amount in the human body. The oxidation-reduction reaction is

(Oxidation reaction immediately under cathode)

(reduction reaction immediately under the anode). Various ionic reactions are actually involved.

Fe produced by the above oxidation reaction³⁺The ions are diffused toward the immediately lower side of the anode 2 by concentration diffusion. On the other hand Fe produced by reduction²⁺Ions diffuse by concentration toward the immediate cathode1 is moved downward. As a result of these, since the + 1-valent charge of the difference flows from the cathode 1 side to the anode 2 side, the ion current Ii flows through the skin 3 from the cathode 1 side to the anode 2 side. Namely: a closed circuit 5 is formed consisting of cathode 1-skin 3-anode 2-lead 4-cathode 1. The skin 3 then acts as a dielectric. In other words, the cathode 1 made of an n-type semiconductor and the anode 2 made of a metal are in contact with the skin 3 of the living body in a state where they are spatially separated from each other, thereby forming a dry chemical battery using the skin 3 as a dielectric.

Since the cathode 1 is made of an n-type semiconductor, a schottky barrier is formed at the interface with the skin 3. Excess positive holes h generated in the cathode 1 are generated by an electric field in a carrier depletion layer (high electric field region 1a) of the schottky barrier⁺Rapidly discharged to the skin 3 side.

In addition, the schottky barrier prevents the entry of electrons or negative ions from the skin 3 to the cathode 1. Thus, if a Schottky barrier is formed, the cathode 1 and negative ions such as OH are suppressed^-The ions react to form hydroxide compounds (electrical insulation) on the surface of the cathode 1.

The loop current I increases as the concentration of free electrons in the cathode 1 increases. However, as the free electron concentration increases, the cathode 1 can gradually take on the properties of a metal. The schottky barrier collapses. As a result, the function of preventing the invasion of negative ions generated by the schottky barrier and the positive holes h generated in the carrier depletion layer (high electric field region 1a) are exerted⁺The discharge effect of (a) is reduced.

The present inventors have found that the carrier concentration at room temperature (hereinafter referred to as "carrier concentration") is about 5X 10¹⁶-2×10¹⁹cm^-3The n-type semiconductor of (2) is used as a cathode material, and a practical dry chemical battery with stable electromotive force can be obtained.

If the carrier concentration in the cathode 1 is below about 5 x 10¹⁶cm^-3The specific resistance of the cathode 1 exceeds about 10 Ω cm. Therefore, the circuit current I is smaller than 0.1 μ a, and the practicality of the dry chemical battery is lowered.

On the other hand, if the carrier concentration in the cathode IAbove about 2X 10¹⁹cm^-3The semiconductor is degraded and a schottky barrier cannot be formed normally. In this case, the excess positive holes h + generated in the cathode 1 are electrically neutralized by the free electrons entering from the skin 3 side, and are consumed as heat in the cathode 1. Furthermore, negative ions such as OH in the cathode 1 are directed from the skin 3 side^-Ions penetrate and form hydroxide (electrical insulator) on the surface of the cathode 1. If the aforementioned hydroxide (electrical insulator) is formed, no current flows at the contact portion of the cathode 1 and the skin 3.

The preferable carrier concentration of the cathode 1 is appropriately selectedaccording to the intended use of the dry chemical battery and the like.

Furthermore, if the ionized donor concentration (carrier concentration) in the cathode 1 is set to N_dDielectric constant ε of cathode 1_rThe diffusion potential generated in the carrier depletion layer is V_dThe voltage applied to the Schottky barrier is V_o(positive sign when the schottky barrier is reverse biased), the thickness d of the schottky barrier is:

d²＝(2ε_rε_o/qN_d)(V_d+V_o)

in the formula, epsilon_oThe dielectric constant of vacuum, q is the charge amount (1.6X 10)^-19Coulombs).

According to the above formula, the Schottky concentration N in the cathode 1_dIs 2 x 10¹⁹cm^-3In the case of (a) in (b),the schottky barrier thickness d is about 90 a (about 9nm) when the cathode 1 is n-type germanium and about 110 a (about 11nm) when the cathode 1 is n-type zinc oxide (zinc oxide with oxygen vacancies). In the case where a compound semiconductor (including a conductive oxide) is used as the cathode 1, a schottky barrier having a thickness of about 100 angstroms (10nm) is formed on many compound semiconductors. However, it is contemplated that the carrier concentration at the cathode 1 is greater than about 2 × 10¹⁹cm^-3In the case of this, the mechanism of intrusion of free electrons into the cathode 1 is mostly the tunnel effect.

The electromotive force of the above dry chemical battery is basically determined by the combination of the anode material and the cathode material.

For exampleGold (Au), iridium (Ir), silver (Ag), copper (Cu), palladium (Pd), etc. are used as anode materials, and the carrier concentration of about 5X 10 is usedas a cathode material¹⁶-2×10¹⁹cm^-3When the contact area of the cathode and the skin and the contact area of the anode and the skin are about 0.01-10cm, respectively²In the case of (1), a dry chemical battery having an electromotive force of 0.2 to 1.5V, a current value of 0.1 to 3. mu.A and an output of 0.01 to 10. mu.W can be obtained relatively easily by appropriately selecting the anode material 1 and its crystallinity (single crystal, polycrystalline or amorphous).

In order to obtain a dry chemical battery safe to the human body, materials safe to the human body are preferably used as the anode material as well as the cathode material. In consideration of safety to the human body, n-type germanium, n-type zinc oxide (zinc oxide having oxygen vacancy), n-type tin oxide, n-type iridium, n-type titanium magnesium oxide, and the like are preferably used as the material of the cathode 1. In addition, in view of the production cost, n-type zinc oxide is particularly preferably used as the material of the cathode 1.

For example, the resistance value of the skin surface of a human body (with 2 metal electrodes in a contact area of 0.1 cm)²The resistance value between the 2 metal electrodes when the electrodes are in contact with the skin) including the electrodes, the contact resistance is about 1K Ω or more, and usually exceeds 100K Ω. However, the resistance value rapidly changes due to sweating. If the skin resistance is lowered by perspiration or the like, a large ion current flows (see fig. 1). The skin is often damaged by this large ion flux. In order to prevent damage to the skin due to excessive current, it is preferable to insert a protective resistor into the closed circuit 5 shown in fig. 1. In order to prevent damage to the skin in the case where the dry chemical battery shown in fig. 1 is used for a long period of time, it is desirable that the ion current Ii is on the order of 0.1mA or less. For this purpose, a protection resistor having a resistance value of the order of 10K Ω or more is preferably inserted into the electrically closed circuit 5. Namely: a load having a suitable resistance value in the range of about 10K omega to 10M omega is preferably inserted into the electrically closed circuit 5.

The cathode and the anode are used in a state of being spaced apart from each other. Therefore, a dry chemical battery or a dry chemical battery member is prepared in advance as needed with a support member for keeping the cathode and the anode in a spaced-apart state. The shape of the support member is not particularly limited, and various shapes such as a rod shape, a flat plate shape, a disc shape, a thin plate shape, and a fitting shape are possible. The cathode and the anode may be disposed at an end or an edge of the support member, and the anode may be formed to protrude from a specific surface, or the cathode may be disposed on the surface so as to surround the anode.

The support member may also function to electrically connect the cathode and the anode together with the load. Further, the pressure-sensitive adhesive layer may be provided in advance on the support member, and the support member and the cathode and anode supported by the support member may be fixed to the skin surface by the pressure-sensitive adhesive layer. In addition, the support member also has a function of protecting the resistor.

Fig. 2 shows embodiment 1 in connection with a dry chemical battery or device according to the invention. Metal terminals 10a, 10b are attached to both ends of the cylindrical chip resistor 10 in the longitudinal direction. Further, the resistance element 10c is provided inside the chip resistor 10. The resistance element 10c is electrically connected to the metal terminals 10a, 10 b. The outer surface of the chip resistor 10 is formed of an electrically insulating material except for the metal terminals 10a, 10 b.

The metal terminal 10a is attached to one end surface in the longitudinal direction of the chip resistor 10 so that a part of the end surface is shielded. Similarly, the metal terminal 10b is attached to the other end surface in the longitudinal direction of the chip resistor 10 so that a part of the end surface is shielded.

The exposed surfaces of the end faces of the metal terminals 10a and 10a are provided with a conductive material having a carrier concentration of 5 × 10¹⁶-2×10¹⁹cm^-3And cathode 11 made of an n-type semiconductor. An anode made of a metal having an electron affinity higher than that of the cathode 11 is attached to the metal terminal 10b and the exposed surface of the end surface to which the metal terminal 10b is attached. The distance between the metal terminal 10a and the metal terminal 10b is about 1 cm. The chip resistor also has a function of a support member for holding the cathode 11 and the anode 12 in a spaced-apart state.

The cathode 11 is, for example,an n-type ZnO thin film having a thickness of about 3 μm is formed by slightly acid-treating a plating film (zinc film) by electrolytic zinc plating so as to shield the metal terminal 10a and the exposed end surface on which the metal terminal 10a is mounted. The n-type ZnO film has a carrier concentration of about 5X 10¹⁸cm^-3. The anode 12 is, for example, a cathode having the gold mounted therein in a shielding mannerA gold film having a thickness of about 3 μm is electrolytically plated on the exposed surface of the end surface of the metal terminal 10 b.

In forming the zinc film as the base of the cathode 11 by electrolytic plating, the metal terminal 10b is coated in advance by a suitable protective film (e.g., glue). Similarly, when the anode 12 is formed by electrolytic plating, the metal terminal 10a is coated in advance with a suitable protective film (e.g., glue). The surfaces of the chip resistor 10 other than the metal terminals 10a, 10b are coated with an electrically insulating material. The portion coated with the electrically insulating material does not need to be protected with a protective film at the time of electrolytic plating.

Of course, the cathode 11 and the anode 12 may be formed by a method other than electrolytic plating, such as physical vapor deposition, chemical vapor deposition, printing, or the like.

If cathode 11 and anode 12 are in contact with skin 13, respectively, a dry chemical battery is formed by cathode 11 and anode 12 and skin 13. At this time, an external current I (loop current I) flows from the anode 12 to the anode 11 through the chip resistor 10. Further, an ion flow Ii flows in the skin 13.

If an n-type ZnO thin film is used as the cathode 11 and a gold film is used as the anode, the electromotive force of the dry chemical battery is about 1.5V. Further, power of the order of 5 μ W can be extracted.

Fig. 3 shows an example of a circuit for taking out electric power from the dry chemical battery shown in fig. 2. As shown in the figure, a load 15 is connected in series with the resistance element 10c in the chip resistor 10, for example, so that a predetermined electric power can be taken out from the load 15. At this time, leads 16a, 16b for taking out electric power are provided in advance in the chip resistor 10.

If the resistance value of the chip resistor 10 is selected to be 1 M.OMEGA., the ion current Ii can be suppressed below 1 μ A regardless of the change in the skin impedance. If the ion current Ii is below about 1 muA, the dry-chemistry battery does not cause substantial damage to the skin 13 even if it is in contact with the skin 13for a long time. If the short circuit occurs between the cathode 11 and the anode 12 on the skin 13 due to perspiration or the like, the redox reaction in the skin 13 is stopped, and accordingly, the power generation is also automatically stopped, so that safety is achieved.

When the dry chemical battery is used, the ion flow Ii flows, and physical stimulation is given to the skin 13 by the ion flow Ii, so that there is an additional effect of curing or alleviating general physical diseases such as shoulder muscle stiffness and waist pain.

The n-type ZnO thin film may be formed by heat-treating a zinc film formed by an electroplating method or the like in a wet air. The carrier concentration of the n-type ZnO thin film varies with the stoichiometric ratio of zinc and oxygen, namely: and varies depending on the degree of oxygen deficiency (oxygen deficiency concentration). Therefore, the carrier concentration of the obtained n-type ZnO thin film can be adjusted by appropriately selecting the heat treatment conditions (humidity, temperature, treatment time, and the like).

Various n-type ZnO thin films having different carrier concentrations were formed by the above-described method, and a dry chemical battery shown in fig. 2 was produced using these n-type ZnO thin films. The relationship between the carrier concentration in the n-type ZnO thin film and the characteristics of the dry chemical cell was investigated.

As a result, if the carrier concentration of the n-type ZnO thin film exceeds about 2X 10¹⁹cm^-3The n-type ZnO thin film should have metallic properties, and the electromotive force of the dry chemical battery is reduced in a short time. The surface of the n-type ZnO film was analyzed to confirm the presence of hydroxide (OH compound). On the other hand, the carrier concentration of the n-type ZnO thin film is less than about 5X10¹⁶cm^-3Even if the resistance value of the chip resistor 10 drops to the order of 100 Ω, the ion current Ii value reaches the order of 0.01 μ a. The ionic current Ii, of the order of 0.01 μ A, also reduces the side effects of curing or alleviating general physical disorders.

Fig. 4 is a circuit configuration diagram showing the apparatus according to embodiment 2 of the present invention. A dry chemical cell is formed by the cathode 21, the anode 22 and the skin 23, to which an external load circuit 24 is connected. The external load circuit 24 is, for example, a part of an electronic watch circuit.

The external load circuit 24 has a structure in which a drive circuit 25 of the electronic watch, a standby 1.5V-incorporated secondary battery 26, and a capacitor 27 are connected in parallel.

The external load circuit 24 is housed within the case of the electronic watch. An electronic circuit such as a display circuit is also incorporated in the housing, and the illustration thereof is omitted here.

The cathode 21 is formed of n-type germanium prepared by adding a donor to germanium, or an n-type semiconductor made of zinc oxide or the like which is not doped with oxygen deficiency. The cathode 24 has a carrier concentration of 5X 10¹⁶-2×10¹⁹cm^-3More preferably 3X 10¹⁷-5×10¹⁸cm^-3Is appropriately selected from the range of (1).

The anode 22 is formed of a metal having an electron affinity greater than that of the cathode 21, such as gold or iridium.

The cathode 21 and the anode 22 are disposed at predetermined positions of the case at a predetermined interval, that is, at a predetermined position where the cathode 21 and the anode 22 can simultaneously contact the skin 23 of the human body when the electronic watch is mounted.

Fig. 5(a) and 5(b) are views showing an example of an electronic watch including a cathode 21 and an anode 22. As shown in fig. 5(a), the electronic watch 30 has the same appearance as a conventional electronic watch in front view. However, on the back surface of the housing 31, as shown in fig. 5(b), the cathode 21 and the anode 22 are embedded in a spaced-apart state. At this time, the housing 31 also functions as a support member for supporting the cathode 21 and the anode 22 in a spaced-apart state.

In the case where the lighting device for illuminating the dial of the electronic wristwatch is not provided, the total power consumption of the drive circuit 25 and the other electronic circuits is about 2 μ W.

When the electronic wristwatch is not mounted on a human body, the power required for driving the electronic wristwatch is supplied from the built-in secondary battery 26.

On the other hand, if the electronic watch is placed on a human body, the cathode 21 and the anode 22 are in contact with the skin 23, and the dry chemical battery operates. The electromotive force of the dry battery is 0.3-1.6V, and the loop current I is 1-21 muA.

Free electrons e if the dry chemical cell is operated^-Flows out from the cathode 21 to the external load circuit 24, and the capacitor 27 is charged first. When the capacitor is charged to 1.5V, the consumed portion of the built-in secondary battery 26 is discharged and replenished from the capacitor 27, and electric power is supplied to the drive circuit 25.

As shown in fig. 4, the voltage supplied to the drive circuit 25 can be stabilized by inserting the capacitor 27 into the external load circuit 24.

Fig. 6 is a cross-sectional view showing the 3 rd embodiment of the device of the present invention. The device 40 shown on the same figure has the following components: a support member 41 formed of a circular plate fixed on one surface by an adhesive tape 41a, a cathode 42 formed so as to surround a protruding portion 41c formed at a central portion of a side surface 41b of the support member 41 opposite to the side where the adhesive tape 41 is fixed, and an anode 43 formed on a surface of the protruding portion 41 c.

The support member 41 is made of metal, BaTiO₃And the like, conductive materials such as conductive carbon, conductive glass, and the like. The cathode 42 has a carrier concentration of 5 × 10 at room temperature¹⁶-2×10¹⁹cm^-3The anode 43 is made of a metal having an electron affinity higher than that of the cathode. The cathode 42 is formed on the surface 41b so as to surround the anode 42 with a certain distance from the anode 43.

The device 40 is attached to the skin 44 by an adhesive tape 41. Since the cathode 42 and the anode 43 are in contact with the skin 44, respectively, a dry chemical battery including the cathode 42, the anode 43, and the skin 44 is formed.

It will be apparent to those skilled in the art that the present invention has been described with reference to the foregoing examples, but the present invention is not limited to the examples and various changes, modifications and combinations can be made.

For example, the dry chemical battery of the present invention can be used as a power source for various devices such as an earphone-type radio, a hearing aid, and a digital thermometer, in addition to a power source for an electronic watch as an example. However, the device of the present invention includes various devices combined with the dry chemical battery of the present invention, in addition to the electronic watch exemplified as an example.

The member for a dry chemical battery of the present invention may be a member other than the living skin, among the members necessary for forming the dry chemical battery of the present invention. The member for dry chemical battery may contain a carrier concentration of 5X 10 at room temperature to the minimum¹⁶-2×10¹⁹cm^-3And an anode made of a metal having an electron affinity higher than that of the cathode. It is also possible that the respective members are separated from each other and connected in a certain relationship. The various components are connected in a relationship when they are in use with the components separated from one another. The inclusion of various combinations of dry cell components is well within the purview of one skilled in the art.

The dry chemical cell member includes, for example, a chip resistor 10 shown in fig. 2, metal terminals 10a and 10b disposed on the chip resistor 10, and a cathode 11 and an anode 12 attached to the metal terminals 10a and 10 b. The dry chemical battery component also includes the cathode 21, the anode 22, and the case 31 shown in fig. 5 (b). Of course, only the two parts of the cathode 21 and the anode 22 shown in fig. 5(b) may be regarded as members for a dry chemical battery. The dry chemical battery member also includes the device 40 shown in fig. 6.

As described above, the dry chemical battery according to the present invention is a dry chemical battery that is easy to improve safety to a human body and operation efficiency. And the dry chemical battery does not have to be pre-equipped with a dielectric. Furthermore, the dry chemical battery described above can be easily formed using the member for a dry chemical battery of the present invention.

Therefore, according to the present invention, it is possible to easily provide a current-driven device which is safe to the human body and has high operation efficiencyat low cost.

Claims

1. A dry-type chemical battery, characterized by comprising: from carriers at room temperatureThe concentration is 5X 10¹⁶-2×10¹⁹cm^-3A cathode made of the n-type semiconductor of (1); an anode made of a metal having a higher electron affinity than the cathode; a support member for supporting the cathode and the anode so as to contact with the skin of the living body in a state where the cathode and the anode are spaced apart from each other.

2. A dry-type chemical battery as recited in claim 1, wherein: the cathode is made of n-type germanium or n-type zinc oxide, and the anode is made of gold or iridium.

3. A dry-type chemical battery as recited in claim 1, wherein: a load for electrically connecting the cathode and the anode.

4. A dry-type chemical battery as recited in claim 1, wherein: in the region not in contact with the skin, a load is electrically connected between the cathode and the anode.

5. A dry-type chemical battery as claimed in claim 4, wherein: the cathode is made of n-type germanium or n-type zinc oxide, and the anode is made of gold or iridium.

6. A dry-type chemical battery as claimed in claim 4, wherein: the cathode and the anode are held in a spaced-apart state by a support member.

7. A dry-type chemical battery as claimed in claim 4, wherein: the load includes a resistor.