With a footprint of 27 mm x 17 mm and a maximum thickness of just 0.45 mm, the new capacitor can be mounted inside a smart card or other thin device. When fully charged, it provides around 50 mJ of energy to power a load. In smart cards, the fast-charging characteristics of the capacitor make it compatible with radio-frequency energy harvesting circuits.

When embedded in a contactless ticketing card for users of a metro transit system, for instance, the capacitor is fully charged in the time it takes the user to present the card to the entry gate’s card reader. The energy stored on the card on entry to the transit system is sufficient to refresh the card’s e-paper display, enabling the card to show for instance an updated read-out of the user’s remaining credit.

The new capacitor EDLC041720-050-2F-13 is highly resistant to damage by twisting and bending, and offers a long operating lifetime. It can reliably be used in smart cards that must conform to ISO 10373-1 5.8 for dynamic bending stress, and ISO 10373-1 5.9 for dynamic torsion stress. It is rated for operation over a temperature range of -20 °C to 60 °C. It also has high resistance to electro-static discharges and pressure. The device contains no rare or heavy metals, is non-flammable, and poses no risk of explosion.