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Simulation and structure optimization of triboelectric nanogenerators considering the effects of parasitic capacitance

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Abstract

Parasitic capacitance is an unavoidable and usually unwanted capacitance that exists in electric circuits, and it is the most important second-order non-ideal effect that must be considered while designing a triboelectric nanogenerator (TENG) because its magnitude is comparable to the magnitude of the TENG capacitance. This paper investigates the structure and performance optimization of TENGs through modeling and simulation, taking the parasitic capacitance into account. Parasitic capacitance is generally found to cause severe performance degradation in TENGs, and its effects on the optimum matching resistance, maximum output power, and structural figures-of-merit (FOMs) of TENGs are thoroughly investigated and discussed. Optimum values of important structural parameters such as the gap and electrode length are determined for the different working modes of TENGs, systematically demonstrating how these optimum structural parameters change as functions of the parasitic capacitance. Additionally, it is demonstrated that the parasitic capacitance can improve the height tolerance of the metal freestanding-mode TENGs. This work provides a theoretical foundation for the structure and performance optimization of TENGs for practical applications and promotes the development of mechanical energy-harvesting techniques.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Collaborative Innovation Center for Micro/Nano Fabrication, Device and System, State Key Laboratory of Precision Measurement Technology and Instruments, Department of Precision Instrument, Tsinghua University, Beijing, 100084, China

    Keren Dai, Xiaofeng Wang, Yajiang Yin & Zheng You

  2. School of Materials Science and Engineering, Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, GA, 30332-0245, USA

    Simiao Niu

  3. State Key Laboratory for Advanced Metals and Materials, School of Materials Science and Engineering, Beijing Municipal Key Laboratory of New Energy Materials and Technologies, University of Science and Technology Beijing, Beijing, 100083, China

    Fang Yi & Yue Zhang

  4. Broadcom Ltd., 2901 Via Fortuna #400, Austin, TX, 78746, USA

    Long Chen

Authors
  1. Keren Dai
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  2. Xiaofeng Wang
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  3. Simiao Niu
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  4. Fang Yi
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  5. Yajiang Yin
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  6. Long Chen
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  7. Yue Zhang
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  8. Zheng You
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Correspondence to Xiaofeng Wang.

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Dai, K., Wang, X., Niu, S. et al. Simulation and structure optimization of triboelectric nanogenerators considering the effects of parasitic capacitance. Nano Res. 10, 157–171 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12274-016-1275-7

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12274-016-1275-7

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