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From the question Did any lightsaber ever run out of power? and DavRob60's answer to it, it appears that the diatium power cell in a lightsaber can be drained by a short circuit (and presumably through normal use) and then recharged again. How is the power cell recharged? Is it regenerative (turn the lightsaber off and it will recharge on its own) or does it require an external source of power like modern rechargeable batteries?

Voronwé
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Xantec
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4 Answers4

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From the Extended Universe books, their power cell is like a modern rechargeable battery. Under normal Jedi use, they simply recharge their lightsaber once every few years. The lightsaber expends minimal energy when it's just on. It uses more when cutting through matter or deflecting blaster bolts. Since they're so efficient, and Star Wars power cells are so powerful, recharging isn't a frequent occurrence. And since it's pretty tedious to watch someone recharge their gadgets, it's pretty much never depicted in the books.

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    Sith can recharge their lightsabers onsite using force lightning. – Jack B Nimble Jan 04 '12 at 18:45
  • @JackBNimble There also seems to be a Light-side equivalent called "Electric Judgment" – Izkata Jan 05 '12 at 00:20
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    @JackBNimble It void the warranty! – DavRob60 Jan 05 '12 at 13:20
  • @Jack I don't know why I laughed at the fact... :) – user931 Jan 05 '12 at 17:41
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    This is actually explicitly shown in the EU novel, I, Jedi - the power cells used are essentially the same that blasters use, and there's a standard charger they can plug into. Corran Horn and Luke Skywalker top their 'sabers off just before going into a big battle. – Jeff Jan 05 '12 at 18:08
  • There's also a fanfic, Splinter of the Minds Eye, that shows Luke using the power cell of a blaster rifle to recharge his weapon simply by plugging the two together and flipping some switch on his saber. This would indicate that Jedi had to recharge their sabers relatively often, probably based on usage much like our own battery technologies, but several orders of magnitude more powerful. – KeithS Jan 11 '12 at 01:22
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    @JackBNimble: I doubt it. According to these calculations http://what-if.xkcd.com/3/ they don't have that much power. – vsz Jul 20 '12 at 14:44
  • @KeithS Jan, Splinter of the Minds Eye was not a fanfic, it was written by the author Alan Dean Foster who also was ghost writer of the novelisation of Star Wars. It was part of his deal to write the original novelisation and was written in consultation with George Lucas .https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Splinter_of_the_Mind%27s_Eye – Sarriesfan Nov 25 '16 at 20:01
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Although we don't see it happening, we can learn from the various Visual Dictionary factbooks that one of the ports on the side of the lightsaber is a "charging port" or "recharge plug". One assumes that it interfaces with common types of charging cables found in the Star Wars galaxy.

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Valorum
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Apparently diatium power cells, if installed properly, could last a lifetime without the need for recharging. It would be interesting to know if the old style lighrtsaber (the ones with external power sources) required regular maintainance and racharging.

user21246
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I submit that a light saber uses the same technology to harness The Force as midichlorines do. It's a receiver, basically, that channels and focuses The Force. It can be operated by a non-force enabled being, but becomes much more powerful when held by a Jedi, Sith, or envy other force-enabled person. As a side note, anyone with the technology can build a light saber, but a true Force User could pour a handful of sand in a bottle and make a light saber. IMHO

Lazarus
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