Researchers at Chalmers University of Technology in Sweden have developed a groundbreaking battery technology that could enable smartphones as thin as a credit card. The system, called ‘massless energy storage’, is designed to form all or part of the body of the phone.

Is it possible to have a smartphone as thin as a credit card?

The smartphone world is moving towards thinner and lighter devices every day. Huawei’s ultra-thin batteries used in its triple foldable phone, the Mate XT, are one of the important steps taken in this area. However, new news from Sweden suggests that we may see much thinner phones in the future.

Researchers at Chalmers University of Technology have developed a battery technology made of carbon fiber composite material that can also be used as the body of the device. This technology opens the door to phones as thin as a credit card (0.76 mm).

Researchers have been working for years to increase the energy storage capacity of carbon fiber. Starting in 2018, they were able to significantly increase the stiffness and energy density of the material. Current prototypes are as stiff as aluminum and have an energy density of 30Wh/kg.