This innovation comes at a critical time. Around 74 million tonnes of electronic waste are discarded globally every year – the equivalent of every person on the planet throwing away around 50 smartphones annually. That waste contains more than £40 billion worth of recoverable materials, most of which is never reclaimed.
As electrification accelerates across sectors such as energy, transport and industry, the volume of power electronics in use is rising sharply – yet these systems are not always designed with repair, reuse or recycling in mind.
When components fail or performance drops, entire units are often scrapped, turning valuable materials into waste and driving unnecessary environmental impact. By rethinking how power electronics are packaged and assembled, the project aims to change that trajectory.
Alongside the liquid metal innovation, the team is developing a modular “standard cell” approach to power electronics design. This would allow common building blocks to be deployed across multiple applications, extending product lifetimes, simplifying repair, and reducing waste at scale.
The project brings together the University of Cambridge and Compound Semiconductor Applications (CSA) Catapult, combining academic research with practical engineering and manufacturing expertise. Working closely with industry partners, the collaboration is focused on translating new ideas into scalable, real-world technology that can be adopted by UK businesses.
