An ultra-low power CMOS MPPT power conditioning circuit for energy harvesters

Abstract

This paper presents the measured results and characterization of a fabricated power conditioning and energy storage integrated circuit for energy harvesters with on-chip maximum power point tracking (MPPT). This ultra-low power circuit employs an AC/DC-to-DC converter to be compatible with both AC and DC voltage energy harvesters, and features a wide input voltage and power range. The circuit was implemented using the AMS CMOS 0:35 μm high voltage technology and all the circuit blocks were designed using analog electronic techniques, with the transistors operating in the sub-threshold region, in order to obtain a minimum power consumption. In fact, this power conditioning circuit consumes less than 2 μW while featuring an input voltage range of +-0:5V to +-50V and a power range of 10 μW to 200mW.