Have you ever been in a hurry to go somewhere, realized your phone is about to die and only had about 20 seconds to charge it? Well, thanks to an 18-year old from Saratoga, California, those 20 seconds may be all the charging you need.
High-school student Eesha Khare, has invented a device that incorporates a supercapacitor and is able to put a large amount of energy into a small space, according to NBC News. The device charges fast and is able to hold the energy over a significant period of time.
In addition, Khare’s device is much better than your regular rechargeable battery. It can be charged 10,000 times. According to Khare, the standard rechargeable battery can only last about 1,000 charge-recharge cycles.
"My cellphone battery always dies," she said in an interview with NBC News when questioned about what prompted her to create such a device.
She explained supercapacitors gave her a chance to focus on her pursuit of nanochemistry— "really working at the nanoscale to make significant advances in many different fields."
So far, Khare has implemented the supercapacitor to energize a light-emitting diode—better known as an LED (commonly used to make flat-screen, high-definition televisions.)
Khare believes her new invention will fit within cellphones and other portable electronic devices. This would allow people to spend less time sitting and waiting for their phone to charge as well as provide a quick solution for someone in a hurry.
"It is also flexible, so it can be used in rollup displays and clothing and fabric," she added. "It has a lot of different applications and advantages over batteries in that sense."
Khare won the Intel Foundation Young Scientist Award at the Intel International Science and Engineering Fair for her invention.
