Laser Power System Allows Drones To Fly Without Battery Swaps

Imagine UAVs that can stay in the air indefinitely. Researchers have taken a major step toward that reality with the development of a wing-mounted receiver that allows the craft to wirelessly recharge via ground-based green laser beams.

Published in the Matter & Light journal, a study led by Han Jianhua at the Civil Aviation University of China details a device capable of converting an impressive 38.49% of incoming laser energy into usable electricity. That efficiency figure represents one of the highest ever recorded for over-the-air laser power transmission.

The setup achieves its performance through a dual-action tandem architecture: at the front end is a specialized perovskite laser cell, which functions like an ultra-focused solar panel tuned specifically to capture 520-nanometer green laser light. Mounted beneath it is a thermoelectric generator, which collects waste heat from the optical cell and turns that into supplementary electrical power.

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