Characterization a Rectifying Antenna under Non-Stationary Propagation Conditions

摘要

In most research works, radiofrequency energy converter circuits are characterized by only their output DC voltage level and their conversion efficiency. These two characteristics are defined for a constant RF input power level. This work proposes a characterization of the performance of a rectifying antenna (rectenna) under non-static operating conditions. A rectenna design method is intended for the harvesting of ambient RF energy. The ambient power density levels in the 2.4 GHz bands are measured and reported in this work. A rectenna optimized to achieve optimal performance at the average detected power is proposed. Unlike previous work, the rectenna is characterized in terms of output DC voltage, conversion efficiency, and the Battery Recharging Time (BRT). It is also evaluated the performance of a Wireless Sensor Node (WSN) powered by the proposed rectenna. An average signal power of -1.55 dBm is obtained, and considering a mesh type network, it is obtained that a WSN can transmit data of a size of 4 kbits at more than 150 m based on the detected ambient power.