Design improvements for an electret-based MEMS vibrational electrostatic energy harvester

• Published in: Journal of physics. Conference series 2013-01, Vol.476 (1), p.12078-5
• Main Authors: Altena, G, Renaud, M, Elfrink, R, Goedbloed, M H, de Nooijer, C, van Schaijk, R
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Configuration management; Design engineering; Design improvements; Devices; Electric power generation; Electrodes; Electrostatics; Energy harvesting; Footprints; Monitoring; Physics
• ISSN: 1742-6596; 1742-6588; 1742-6596
• DOI: 10.1088/1742-6596/476/1/012078

This paper presents several improvements to the design of an electret-based MEMS vibrational electrostatic energy harvester that have led to a two orders of magnitude increase in power compared to a previously presented device. The device in this paper has a footprint of approximately 1 cm2 and generated 175 μW. The following two improvements to the design are discussed: the electrical connection principle of the harvester and the electrode geometrical configuration. The measured performance of the device is compared with simulations. When exited by sinusoidal vibration, a device employing the two design improvements but with a higher resonance frequency and higher electret potential generated 495 μW AC power, which is the highest reported value for electret-based MEMS vibrational electrostatic energy harvesters with a similar footprint. This makes this device a promising candidate for the targeted application of wireless tire pressure monitoring systems (TPMS).