#ENERGY: "Piezoelectric Viruses Self-Assembly Energy Generators"

Many biological organisms have been used in electronics, but this is first application I know of where living things are used to create an electronic material. These genetically engineered viruses were made to be piezoelectric, thus solving the manufacturing and assembly problems of nanoscale components in one fell swoop: R. Colin Johnson




Here is what EETimes says about piezoelectric viruses: Scientists have discovered a way to genetically engineer a living virus to be piezoelectric, enabling self-assembling arrays of them to produce enough electricity to power small electronic devices. In their demonstration prototype, a button backed with a virus array generated enough electricity to illuminate an LCD display.

Researchers at the U.S. Department of Energy's Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratories hope to extend their discovery by growing nanoscale arrays of piezoelectric viruses in sheets that generate enough energy to power mobile devices from normal body motions, such as walking, without the need for batteries.
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