Title :
Thermoelectric Microconverter for Energy Harvesting Systems
Author :
Carmo, J.P. ; Goncalves, L.M. ; Correia, J.H.
Author_Institution :
Dept. of Ind. Electron., Univ. of Minho, Guimaraes, Portugal
fDate :
3/1/2010 12:00:00 AM
Abstract :
This paper presents a solution for energy microgeneration through energy harvesting by taking advantage of temperature differences that are converted into electrical energy using the Seebeck effect. A thermoelectric microconverter for energy scavenging systems that can supply low-power electronics was fabricated using thin films of bismuth and antimony tellurides. Thin films of n-type bismuth (Bi2Te3) and p-type antimony (Sb2Te3) tellurides were obtained by thermal coevaporation with thermoelectric figures of merit (ZT) at room temperature of 0.84 and 0.5 and power factors (PF ?? 10-3 [W ?? K-1 ??m-2]) of 4.87 and 2.81, respectively. The films were patterned by photolithography and wet-etching techniques. The goal for this thermoelectric microconverter is to supply individual electroencephalogram (EEG) modules composed by an electrode, processing electronics, and an antenna, where the power consumption ranges from hundredths of microwatts to a few milliwatts. Moreover, these wireless EEG modules allow patients to maintain their mobility while simultaneously having their electrical brain activity monitored.
Keywords :
Seebeck effect; antimony compounds; bismuth compounds; electroencephalography; energy harvesting; evaporation; low-power electronics; photolithography; thermoelectric conversion; thin films; Bi2Te3; Sb2Te3; Seebeck effect; antimony tellurides; bismuth tellurides; electrical brain activity; electrical energy; electroencephalogram modules; energy harvesting systems; energy microgeneration; energy scavenging systems; low power electronics; photolithography; temperature 293 K to 298 K; thermal coevaporation; thermoelectric microconverter; thin films; wet etching; Energy harvesting; microgeneration; renewable energy sources; thermoelectric energy scavenging systems;
Journal_Title :
Industrial Electronics, IEEE Transactions on
DOI :
10.1109/TIE.2009.2034686