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Re:DARPA program sets distance record for power beaming by cap11235 on Monday June 16, 2025 @10:58AM (#44290229)
The biggest issue for weight is that you are using trans-uranic materials. By their fundamental nature, they are heavy as fuck.
Re:DARPA program sets distance record for power beaming by ben_w on Monday June 16, 2025 @01:17PM (#44291434)
Nope.

Betavolatics can be just about anything that emits an electron. Could be tritium. Low power due to long half life and low decay energy, but not because it is low-Z.

RTGs can be anything that gets hot from its own radiation. Loads of things with a short half-life and high decay energy, so phosphorus-32 would be a low-Z option, and polonium-210 (which still isn't transuranic) if you're completely disregarding safety.

Big part of the mass budget is shielding, not source. This gets proportionally worse for small sources, as you need a certain thickness (proportional to r^2), while the emitter power is proportional to volume (r^3).