A novel thin film solid oxide fuel cell for microscale energy conversion

A novel approach for the fabrication and assembly of a solid oxide fuel cell system is described which enables effective scaling of the fuel delivery, manifold, and fuel cell stack components for applications in miniature and microscale energy conversion. Scaling towards miniaturization is accomplished by utilizing thin film deposition combined with novel micromachining approaches which allow manifold channels and fuel delivery system to be formed within the substrate which the thin film fuel cell stack is fabricated on, thereby circumventing the need for bulky manifold components which are not directly scalable. Results demonstrating the generation of electrical current in the temperature range of 200-400 degrees C for a thin film solid oxide fuel cell stack fabricated on a silicon wafer will be presented.