It’s a problem everyone has experienced: after a few years of use, batteries for electronic devices – be they computers, cellphones, MP3 players, or tablets – just don’t seem to hold a charge anymore. But according to a report from the publication, Science Daily, the days of lithium ion batteries losing their ability to hold a charge could soon be at an end. A partnership between scientists at Stanford University and from the Department of Energy’s SLAC National Accelerator Lab has produced the world’s first self-healing battery.

The team, whose report of the experiment be published in tomorrow’s issue of Nature Chemistry, claim that a “stretchy polymer” used to coat the battery electrode is the key to longer-lasting lithium ion battery cells. Supposedly, the stretchy polymer holds the battery electrode together and even heals the tiny cracks that develop in the electrode over time. Since those small cracks are generally the reason behind failing batteries, a system that can automatically repair them could be the key to batteries that never run out of juice.

The brainchild of Chao Wang, a postdoctoral researcher at Stanford, the self-healing polymer was actually inspired by animals and plants, which can only survive and thrive for long periods of time if they have the ability to heal themselves. Since Stanford’s research team has been working to develop “flexible electronic skin” for robots, prosthetic limbs, and other futuristic uses, they were the perfect candidates for developing a skin of sorts that could protect and heal a battery. The team already had the polymer they needed for the battery, they just had to make sure it wouldn’t conduct electricity itself – a hurdle that was cleared with just a few particles of carbon.

Once the self-healing polymer had been adapted, the Stanford team applied it to the silicon electrode of a modern lithium ion battery. Silicon has become a popular material for use in batteries in recent years, thanks for its ability to store a large amount of energy during charge without adding excess weight to the device it is used to power. Since most mobile device makers are working hard to cut weight from their products while simultaneously allowing for added power and longevity, silicon electrodes have proven to be a near-perfect solution.

But perfection has remained at a distance. In their race to absorb as much energy as possible, silicon electrodes have to swell to three times their usual size every time they are charged, reverting back to their normal size as their energy is used up. Since most mobile phone users go through this charge cycle once a day or more, it quickly takes a toll on the battery. The silicon electrode begins to crack and break, and the device loses its ability to hold a charge.

The new polymer allows for those cracks to heal in just a few hours, theoretically making it possible for mobile devices to charge once or twice a day without destroying the electrode. If implemented in market devices, the innovation could mean longer charges on a day-to-day basis, as well as longer lifespans for smartphones, tablets, laptop computers, and other heavy-use electronics.