Date of Award
Spring 2021
Document Type
Thesis
Publisher
Santa Clara : Santa Clara University, 2021.
Department
Electrical and Computer Engineering
First Advisor
Kurt Schab
Abstract
There is a need to power Internet of Things (IoT) applications that require frequent, expensive, and/or dangerous battery replacements. Radio-frequency energy harvesting (RFEH) is a possible alternative source of power for select IoT sensor applications. In comparison to other methods of energy harvesting, RFEH has the smallest incident power densities and therefore comes with many design challenges.
In this project we implement a novel RFEH system powered via a dedicated transmitter. A planar inverted-F antenna (PIFA) and voltage doubler circuit form the designed rectenna (rectifier + antenna) and the system is implemented on a custom PCB to carry out RF-to-DC conversion. The system’s feasibility is demonstrated by powering a commercial power management unit (PMU) and temperature sensor over a test duration of eight hours.
Recommended Citation
Rothschild, Austin and Nguyen, Kristi, "Powering IoT Sensors with RF Energy Harvesting" (2021). Electrical and Computer Engineering Senior Theses. 62.
https://scholarcommons.scu.edu/elec_senior/62