Nanophotovoltaic Devices Can Provide Voltage to Biological Cells to Kill Cancer

Spire Corporation (Bedford, MA) received U.S. Patent 7,772,612 for nanophotovoltaic devices. Steven J. Wojtczuk, James G. Moe and Roger G Little’s invention provides nanophotovoltaic devices having sizes in a range of about 50 nm to about 5 microns, and a method of their fabrication.

The nanoparticles are preferably biocompatible and can be injected into a selected tissue, e.g., cancerous tissue, and activated, for example, by irradiation at a suitable wavelength, to cause generation of a voltage across them. An electric field associated with the induced voltage can be experienced by tissue cells in vicinity of the nanoparticles or attached thereto. The applied electric field can be sufficiently high so as to disrupt functioning of the cells or cause their death. 

In some embodiments, the nanophotovoltaic device includes a semiconductor core, e.g., formed of silicon, sandwiched between two metallic layers, one of which forms a Schottky barrier junction with the semiconductor core and the other forms an ohmic contact therewith. In other embodiment, the nanophotovoltaic device includes a semiconductor core comprising a p-n junction that is sandwiched between two metallic layers forming ohmic contacts with the core.

Spire is a leading global solar company providing capital equipment to manufacture PV modules & cells, turnkey solar manufacturing lines and PV systems. 

Spire’s invention is directed generally to nanometer-sized quantum structures, and more particularly to such structures that can be selectively activated to perform a desired function, for example, apply a voltage to biological cells in proximity thereof or attached thereto.

Nanometer-sized or micrometer-sized semiconductor structures can be employed in a variety of applications, such as light-emitting devices and photodetectors. Despite the recent rapid developments in designing novel nanometer-sized and micrometer-sized quantum structures, and incorporating them into a variety of systems, a need still exists for improved nanometer-sized and micrometer-sizes structures that can reliably perform selected functions in response to specific stimuli. 

Exposure of the nanoparticle to radiation having a selected wavelength can cause generation of electron-hole pairs therein. The space charge region associated with the semiconductor/metal junction supports an electric field that can cause separation of these electron-hole pairs to facilitate generation of a voltage across the device.