Researchers at Georgia Tech have found a way to capture and harness ambient energy transmitted by such sources as radio and television transmitters, cell phone networks, and satellite communications systems. It is believed that the technique could provide a new way to power networks of wireless sensors, microprocessors, and communications chips.
"There is a large amount of electromagnetic energy all around us, but nobody has been able to tap into it," Manos Tentzeris, a professor in the Georgia Tech School of Electrical and Computer Engineering who is leading the research, said in a statement. "We are using an ultra-wideband antenna that lets us exploit a variety of signals in different frequency ranges, giving us greatly increased power-gathering capability."
According to the university, the team's scavenging devices can capture energy transmitted by communications devices, convert it from AC to DC, and then store it in capacitors and batteries. The scavenging technology currently can take advantage of frequencies from FM radio to radar, a range spanning 100 MHz to 15 GHz or higher.
Scavenging experiments utilizing TV bands have yielded power amounting to hundreds of microwatts, and multi-band systems are expected to generate one milliwatt or more, the school reported. The school added that that amount of power is enough to operate many small electronic devices, including a variety of sensors and microprocessors.
"There is a large amount of electromagnetic energy all around us, but nobody has been able to tap into it," Manos Tentzeris, a professor in the Georgia Tech School of Electrical and Computer Engineering who is leading the research, said in a statement. "We are using an ultra-wideband antenna that lets us exploit a variety of signals in different frequency ranges, giving us greatly increased power-gathering capability."
According to the university, the team's scavenging devices can capture energy transmitted by communications devices, convert it from AC to DC, and then store it in capacitors and batteries. The scavenging technology currently can take advantage of frequencies from FM radio to radar, a range spanning 100 MHz to 15 GHz or higher.
Scavenging experiments utilizing TV bands have yielded power amounting to hundreds of microwatts, and multi-band systems are expected to generate one milliwatt or more, the school reported. The school added that that amount of power is enough to operate many small electronic devices, including a variety of sensors and microprocessors.
More at: EDN
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