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MIT researchers built zinc-air microbatteries just 2 picoliters in volume that can power tiny electronic components and an actuator. The work is a step toward cell-sized robots, not a demonstration of a fully integrated, untethered robot: in the study, the battery was wired to external devices, and robot integration was described as future work.
What MIT built
The 2024 paper “High energy density picoliter-scale zinc-air microbatteries for colloidal robotics,” published in Science Robotics, describes primary microbatteries made from a microscale zinc, platinum and SU-8 structure using photolithographic patterning. The authors report individual devices with a volume of 2 picoliters. MIT describes a battery as 0.1 millimeters long and 0.002 millimeters thick—roughly the thickness of a human hair—while the Strano Research Group summarizes the devices as less than 100 micrometers across and around 2 micrometers thick. The paper abstract and the group’s study summary describe the scale and results.
How the zinc-air battery works
Unlike a conventional sealed battery, this design draws oxygen from its surroundings. Zinc oxidation releases electrons that travel through an external circuit toward the platinum electrode, while oxygen takes part in the cathode reaction. The operating environment matters: a Nature Reviews Materials highlight says the design can use dissolved oxygen and ionic species in biomedical environments without an integrated electrolyte. In dry environments, an ionic-liquid electrolyte can be added, but doing so involves a performance trade-off. Nature Reviews Materials’ highlight discusses these environmental conditions.
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What the measurements show
The headline energy-density range comes from the Strano Research Group’s 2024 summary; the other figures below are measurements reported in the study’s abstract. These are battery-level results, not a measure of a complete robot’s range, speed or ability to perform complex tasks.
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| Measurement | Reported result | Source and context |
|---|---|---|
| Energy density | 760–1,070 watt-hours per liter | Strano Research Group, 2024 summary, for devices less than 100 micrometers across and around 2 micrometers thick. |
| Device volume | 2 picoliters | Study authors, 2024; individual primary microbatteries. |
| Open-circuit voltage | 1.05 ± 0.12 volts | Study authors, 2024; reported for the 2-picoliter devices. |
| Total energy | 5.5 ± 0.3 to 7.7 ± 1.0 microjoules | Study authors, 2024; reported range for the devices. |
| Maximum power | About 2.7 nanowatts | Study authors, 2024; reported near this level in the abstract. |
Photolithography also offers a path to making many devices: the group says its process can release 10,000 batteries per wafer into solution. That manufacturing figure is the group’s study summary, not a claim that the devices are commercially available. The same summary reports reversible bending of microscale bimorph actuators at 0.05 hertz; that actuator result should not be read as a walking speed or operating rate for a finished robot. The Strano Research Group summary provides these fabrication and actuator details.
What the battery actually powered
The researchers demonstrated specific small loads, including a micrometer-sized memristor circuit, a clock circuit, two chemical sensors and a bending actuator. The sensors detect chemicals through changes in electrical resistance: one uses molybdenum disulfide and the other carbon nanotubes. MIT reports that the team wired the battery to an external device during the study. It did not report a cell-sized robot operating with the battery integrated onboard. MIT News’ account of the demonstrations describes both the components and the status of integration.
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Why an onboard battery matters—and what remains to be done
Earlier MIT colloidal electronics used photodiodes to draw power from light and were described as having no internal battery. Light-powered devices depend on an external light source; an onboard energy store could provide more autonomy where that source is unavailable. That does not make batteries the only route to powering microrobots: the Strano group also discusses propulsion that converts chemical, electrical, optical or acoustic energy into mechanical work. The available reports do not provide a head-to-head performance trial between these approaches. MIT’s 2018 report on light-powered colloidal devices describes the earlier approach.
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Michael Strano, MIT’s Carbon P. Dubbs Professor of Chemical Engineering and the study’s senior author, said, “A battery is essential for something that’s not going to be tethered to the outside world.” He also described the next step: “We’re building robotic functions onto the battery and starting to put these components together into devices.” The distinction is important: the battery and component demonstrations are research results; a robot with the battery integrated and working untethered was prospective in MIT’s 2024 account.
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What applications are possible
MIT and the research group discuss possible uses such as drug delivery or sensing inside the body, and locating leaks in gas pipelines. These are potential applications, not validated deployments. For biomedical use, MIT says future devices would need biocompatible materials and might be designed to break apart after use; the reported work does not establish a medical device or clinical use.
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