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Optimization of a vibrating MEMS electromagnetic energy harvester using simulations

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Abstract

Nowadays, wireless sensor networks (WSN) are becoming essential in our daily life. However, a major constraint concerns the energy power supply. Indeed, batteries need to be recharged or replaced often which implies a limited lifetime for WSN nodes. One alternative consists in harvesting mechanical energy from surrounding vibrations of the environment. Using finite element simulations, we report here a complete guideline to optimize a MEMS electromagnetic energy harvester consisting of an in-plane vibrating silicon frame supporting an array of micromagnets that faces a static 2D micro-coil. The dimensioning of the magnet array and the specific design of the coil are addressed, considering patterned 50 \(\upmu \)m thick NdFeB films with out of plane magnetization. The optimization of the electromechanical coupling which allows to efficiently convert the energy results from a trade-off between the high magnetic flux gradients produced by the micromagnets and the maximum number of turns of the facing coil.

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Data Availability Statement

This manuscript has associated data in a data repository. [Authors’ comment: The datasets generated during and/or analysed during the current study are available from the corresponding author on reasonable request.]

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Acknowledgements

This study has been partially supported through the French national project POMADE (ANR 19-CE09-0021-01), the EUR grant NanoX n°ANR-17-EURE-0009 in the framework of the “ Programme des Investissements d’Avenir” and the prematuration program of the Région Occitanie (AimCap). PM thanks the Région Occitanie and the Université Fédérale de Toulouse for phD funding.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Université de Toulouse, INSA-CNRS-UPS, LPCNO, 135 Av. Rangueil, 31077, Toulouse, France

    Ilona Lecerf, Pierre Moritz, Guillaume Viau, Lise-Marie Lacroix & Thomas Blon

  2. Laboratoire d’Analyse et d’Architecture des Systèmes, CNRS, 7 avenue du Colonel Roche, 31077, Toulouse, France

    Ilona Lecerf, Pierre Moritz, José Elías Angulo-Cervera, Fabrice Mathieu, David Bourrier, Liviu Nicu & Thierry Leïchlé

  3. Georgia Tech-CNRS International Research Laboratory, School of Electrical and Computer Engineering, Atlanta, GA, USA

    Thierry Leïchlé

  4. Université Grenoble Alpes, Institut Néel, 38042, Grenoble, France

    Frederico Orlandini-Keller, Thibaut Devillers & Nora M. Dempsey

Authors
  1. Ilona Lecerf
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  2. Pierre Moritz
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  3. José Elías Angulo-Cervera
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  4. Fabrice Mathieu
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  5. David Bourrier
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  6. Liviu Nicu
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  7. Thierry Leïchlé
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  8. Frederico Orlandini-Keller
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  9. Thibaut Devillers
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  10. Nora M. Dempsey
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  11. Guillaume Viau
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  12. Lise-Marie Lacroix
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  13. Thomas Blon
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Corresponding authors

Correspondence to Lise-Marie Lacroix or Thomas Blon.

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Lecerf, I., Moritz, P., Angulo-Cervera, J.E. et al. Optimization of a vibrating MEMS electromagnetic energy harvester using simulations. Eur. Phys. J. Spec. Top. 231, 4205–4211 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1140/epjs/s11734-022-00577-8

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