MicroTech™ Battery and Capacitor Technology

MicroTech Capacitors

Medtronic is shaping the future of ICDs with its MicroTech capacitors, introduced in the GEM II devices. Thin and contoured, the new capacitors are a significant break from the shape of traditional ICD capacitors.

Due to these new capacitors, the GEM II DR has a volume of 39.5 cc and the GEM II VR is just 39 cc.

Most ICD capacitors are constructed of long strips of anode and cathode that are wound into a coil (see image at left above). The resulting cylindrical shape is not space-efficient.

The new MicroTech capacitors, though, are thin and contoured (see image at right above). The entire ICD, therefore, can be made smaller while still delivering powerful therapy to the patient.

To meet the increasing demands for smaller, powerful devices, Medtronic invested in its own capacitor and battery technology. For many years, designing smaller capacitors has been a major goal of research and development at Medtronic. Today, Medtronic manufactures the MicroTech capacitors and all of the other power components in the new GEM II devices.

Patented MicroTech
silver vanadium oxide

Ordinary silver vanadium oxide

MicroTech Battery Technology

Medtronic ICD batteries have a unique crystalline structure that has been proven to result in less of an increase in resistance over time, as compared to other ICD batteries.¹

All ICD batteries — including those used in Medtronic ICDs — are made from lithium silver vanadium oxide (Li/SVO). However, the SVO in Medtronic ICD batteries is different. Through a patented process, the SVO in Medtronic batteries has larger crystals that make the batteries more stable and predictable.

Over time, a battery's chemical composition changes, resulting in increased resistance and greater charge time. A study of Medtronic batteries, though, proves that this larger crystalline structure results in less of an increase in resistance over time.¹

References

1. Schmidt CL, Crespi AM, Skarstad PM. Modeling of Long-Term Lithium/Silver Vanadium Oxide Battery Performance. Abstract 601. To Be Presented at The Electrochemical Society, May 1999.

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