Powermat Technologies and Leyden Energy Announce Partnership to Develop High-Density, Heat-Resilient, Wirelessly Chargeable Batteries
Joint Collaboration Intended to Yield Li-imide™ Batteries for Smartphones and Other Mobile Devices
FREMONT, Calif., January 10, 2012 — Leyden Energy, Inc., the leading manufacturer of advanced lithium-imide (Li-imide™) batteries today announced an agreement with Powermat Technologies, a market leader in wireless charging technology for smartphones and other consumer electronics, to develop high-density, heat-resilient Li-imide battery cells and packs with embedded wireless charging functionality that will provide consumers with a high quality mobile experience.
As part of the collaboration announced today, Leyden Energy will supply Powermat Technologies with a battery thin enough to embed Powermat Technologies’ wireless charging technology onto the battery cell iself without compromising the cell’s original battery capacity. The technology is expected to have a distinctive set of technological advantages – namely, embedded wireless charging technology, enabling tethering-free charging of the phone and the battery by itself, longer battery warranty thanks to higher cycle and calendar life rating and higher temperature resilience, stemming directly from Leyden Energy’s patented, thermally superior Li-imide chemistry platform, the future of Li-ion power.
“Powermat Technologies was the first company to bring to market batteries for smartphones that incorporate wireless charging,” said Ran Poliakine, Powermat Technologies’ CEO. “Thanks to Leyden Energy’s higher volumetric and gravimetric energy density, wireless charging batteries can now have the same energy density as equivalently sized standard batteries.”
The integration of embedded wireless charging functionality requires a thinner battery to allow space for the new technology layer that enables charging; typically, using standard Li-ion batteries with their heat-sensitive LiPF6 (lithium hexafluorophosphate) electrolyte, this reduction in battery size would mean sacrificing battery capacity and compromising on charging speeds. But now with its patented Li-imide chemistry platform, Leyden Energy can produce thinner batteries that deliver equal or higher energy density in a smaller volume than leading competitors’ batteries without sacrificing cycle life or calendar life.
“We are excited to partner with the industry leader to address the growing demand for wireless power,” said Leyden Energy CEO Aakar Patel. “Shaving close to a millimeter off the height of a typical legacy lithium-ion cell to embed Powermat Technologies’ wireless charging solution and coil directly on to the battery cell would typically diminish battery run-time, but our patented Li-imide chemistry platform offers a compromise-free solution.”
Leyden Energy’s battery products are perfectly suited for consumer electronics applications due to their higher energy density, reduced swelling, higher levels of safety and excellent thermal properties. These attributes also make Leyden Energy’s batteries well suited for use in EVs and the harsh conditions associated with grid and backup storage applications.
About Leyden Energy, Inc.
Leyden Energy is the world’s leading manufacturer of advanced Li-imide™ batteries for the mobile, consumer electronics, energy storage and light electric vehicle markets. The company’s patented and proprietary lithium-imide chemistry platform addresses the shortcomings of previous generations of lithium-ion batteries by offering higher energy density, superior thermal stability and longer cycle and calendar life, resulting in optimal safety and durability, even in high temperature environments. Leyden Energy’s investors include New Enterprise Associates (NEA), Lightspeed Ventures, Sigma Partners and Walden International. Leyden Energy’s pilot manufacturing, testing facility and executive offices are located in Fremont, Calif. For more information, visit www.leydenenergy.com.