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We have built and tested a prototype miniaturized thermoelectric power source that generates 450μW of electrical power in a system volume of 4.3cm³. The measured power density of 104μWcm⁻³ exceeds that of any previously reported thermoelectric power system of equivalent size. This improvement was achieved by implementing a novel thermopile design in which wagon wheel-shaped thermoelectric elements contact the entire circumference of the heat source whereas traditional approaches utilize only one heat source surface. The thermopile consists of 22 wagon wheel-shaped elements (11 P–N thermocouples) fabricated from 215-μm thick bismuth–telluride wafers having ZT=0.97 at 30°C. The power source operates on a 150mW thermal input provided by an electrical resistance heater that simulates a capsule containing 0.4g of ²³⁸PuO₂ located at the center of the device. Our primary research objective …