An integrated RF energy harvester for UHF wireless powering applications

摘要

A RF energy harvester comprised of an integrated differential RF-DC converter and a differential PCB custom antenna is presented for wireless powering applications in the UHF band. The RF-DC converter, based on a reconfigurable voltage rectifier directly connected to a matched PCB antenna, is designed for high efficiency and sensitivity. Prototypes of the RF-DC converter realized in CMOS 130nm technology show a −16dBm sensitivity and a 60% peak efficiency. The RF-DC converters operate within the −16dBm÷0dBm input power range with an efficiency which remains above the 40% for more than 10dB. The RF energy harvester operates on the 840MHz÷975MHz band thanks to the ad-hoc designed wide-band differential antenna.