Rectenna: Wireless Energy Harvesting System

Wirelessly powered large-area electronics for the Internet of Things

“…RF energy harvesting is a viable option for wirelessly powering sensor nodes due to the wide availability of RF energy sources (e.g., Wi-Fi and cellular signals), which make it an ecofriendly solution 41 . However, RF energy harvesters should be capable of operating over a wide range of input powers and frequency bands to ensure optimal performance 42 .…”

“…Therefore, their performance and cost have a direct impact on the deployability of RF energy harvesting. For instance, recent developments have led to printed antennas that are inexpensive, efficient, lightweight, durable, and able to operate from kilohertz to hundreds of gigahertz 42 . In regard to RF rectifiers, Si-based CMOS devices (see Fig.…”

“…In regard to RF rectifiers, Si-based CMOS devices (see Fig. 4a for a comparison among various technologies) suffer from low sensitivity, limited flexibility, high leakage current, large turn-on voltage, and costly manufacturing 42 . Among the alternative solutions, Schottky diodes offer key advantages-e.g., low junction capacitance, low turn-on voltage, and fast switching 42 .…”

“…4a for a comparison among various technologies) suffer from low sensitivity, limited flexibility, high leakage current, large turn-on voltage, and costly manufacturing 42 . Among the alternative solutions, Schottky diodes offer key advantages-e.g., low junction capacitance, low turn-on voltage, and fast switching 42 . Notably, LAE Schottky diodes are attractive due to their scalability for industrial production 43 .…”

Nanomaterials and Devices for Harvesting Ambient Electromagnetic Waves

“…Harvesting the fraction of EM energy that is unexploited allows the self-powering of low-consumption electronic devices, e.g., those connected within Internet of things (IoT) architectures. The power supply mechanism associated with RF-EH techniques is based on a rectenna, i.e., an antenna loaded with an (un)biased diode [ 3 , 4 , 5 ]. Figure 1 shows the schematic of a generic rectenna, in which the antenna provides the RF input to a rectifying diode, whose DC output voltage V DC is the voltage drop on the load capacitor.…”