Stanford Seminar - Wafer-Scale Thermionic Energy Converters?

Stanford Online: University Courses & Lectures · Oct 18, 2026 · 1h 15m

"Wafer-Scale Thermionic Energy Converters?"- Roger T. Howe of Stanford UniversityUploaded 15-10-15About the talk:Thermionic energy converters (TECs) were conceived in 1915, demonstrated in 1939, and were the focus of huge investments during the Cold War by the U.S. and the Soviet Union. A 6 kW thermionic converter, fabricated using precision machining technology, was flown in 1987 by the Soviet Union. TEC research ramped down in the 1990s and the field withered to a few embers by 2005. I will review the simple physics of TECs and what the barriers have been to applying them to direct…