Summer School: Energy Harvesting at micro and nanoscale,

NiPS Workshop: Noise in dynamical systems at the micro and nanoscale

La Tenuta dei Ciclamini, Avigliano Umbro (TR) - Italy

Thermal Energy Harvesting for

Low-Power Autonomous Sensors

Simone Dalola, Vittorio Ferrari, Daniele Marioli

University of Brescia - Italy
Department of Information Engineering

simone.dalola@ing.unibs.it
 Introduction
Extensive diffusion of sensing nodes (automotive, automation,
entertainment, environment monitoring, security systems,…)
Size
Number of nodes
Price

Limitingfactor:
Limiting factor:power
powersupply
supply

Standard power supply Energy harvesting

• battery
9 Solar energy
• rechargeable battery 9 Mechanical vibrations
Environment
Environment
• fuel cells 9 Heat
• …. 9…

Simone Dalola Thermal Energy Harvesting for Low-Power Autonomous Sensors 2/24
 Energy from heat

Thermal gradients ΔT = Th − Tc
Thermoelectric conversion

Vg ∝ ΔT

∂T
Temperature time-variations
∂t
Pyroelectric conversion

∂T
Ig ∝
∂t

Simone Dalola Thermal Energy Harvesting for Low-Power Autonomous Sensors 3/24
 Thermoelectric effects

Seebeck effect (1821)

Tc
V g = αa,b (Th − Tc ) = αa,b ΔT
0

a b Vg
ƒ αa,b: Seebeck coefficient
Th ƒ f.e.m. proportional to ΔT
ƒ reversible effect
Thermocouple/thermogenerator
Microdevice

Cooling device Micromachining device

Simone Dalola Thermal Energy Harvesting for Low-Power Autonomous Sensors 4/24
 Thermoelectric generators (TEG)

• Development of materials
• Design of micromachined devices

www.micropelt.com

• Investigate of the feasibility of micromachined thermoelectric

generators for energy harvesting application using really
available MEMS technologies
– Technology
– Available thermoelectric materials for fabrication process
– Structural configuration → planar thermocouples

Simone Dalola Thermal Energy Harvesting for Low-Power Autonomous Sensors 5/24
 Design of a MEMS TEG

• At microscale can be difficult to apply or keep thermal

gradients
• The idea is to use thermal gradient in the MEMS due to heat
flow in elements with different thermal resistances

Thermocouples air convective flow

or forced flow

Q Q
Thermal gradient

Th

Simone Dalola Thermal Energy Harvesting for Low-Power Autonomous Sensors 6/24
 Design of a MEMS TEG

Simone Dalola Thermal Energy Harvesting for Low-Power Autonomous Sensors 7/24
 Design of a MEMS TEG
• Planar thermocouple made in 7mm
polysilicon - aluminum
– 500 μm x 50 μm
– αa,b ≈ 100µV/°C
– R= 320 Ω

7mm
• Two arrays of thermocouples:
– External: 300 elements (75x4)
– Internal: 160 elements (40x4)
• Four polysilicon resistors for:
– Heating
– Temperature detection
• Electrical resistance:
– Rext: 96 kΩ
– Rint: 51 kΩ
• Central hole (0.5 mm x 0.5 mm)
Simone Dalola Thermal Energy Harvesting for Low-Power Autonomous Sensors 8/24
 Design of a MEMS TEG

• FEM simulation of the behaviour of MEMS

• Th = 80°C:

Simone Dalola Thermal Energy Harvesting for Low-Power Autonomous Sensors 9/24
 Design of a MEMS TEG

• FEM simulation of the behaviour of MEMS

• Th = 80°C:
‰ ΔText ≈ 350°C/m*500μm ≈ 0.17 °C → Vg= Nα ΔT ≈ 5.1 mV
‰ ΔTint ≈ 200°C/m*500μm ≈ 0.10 °C → Vg= Nα ΔT ≈ 1.6 mV

Simone Dalola Thermal Energy Harvesting for Low-Power Autonomous Sensors 10/24
 Design of a MEMS TEG

• FEM simulation of the behaviour of MEMS

• Th = 80°C:
‰ ΔText ≈ 350°C/m*500μm ≈ 0.17 °C → Vg= Nα ΔT ≈ 5.1 mV
‰ ΔTint ≈ 200°C/m*500μm ≈ 0.10 °C → Vg= Nα ΔT ≈ 1.6 mV

Simone Dalola Thermal Energy Harvesting for Low-Power Autonomous Sensors 11/24
 Pyroelectric effect

++++++++++++++++++++
IP ‰ Property of some dielectric materials with
a polar point symmetry which exhibit a
∂T spontaneous electrical polarization that is a
A
∂t function of temperature.
--------------------------
‰ A time variation of the temperature causes
a correspondent variation in the induced
charge, which develops a current if
contacting electrodes are placed on the
material faces normal to the polar axis.
∂Q ∂T
IP = = Sλ
.
∂t ∂t

W T IP Vp • S: Electrode area
RT CT Rp Cp • λ: Pyroelectric coefficient

Thermal model Electric model

Simone Dalola Thermal Energy Harvesting for Low-Power Autonomous Sensors 12/24
 Energy harvesting from temperature fluctuations

• Low power generation • Low cost

• Low conversion efficiency • A lot of thermal sources
• Temperature fluctuations

Infrared
motion
detector

Estimation:

S= 10 cm2

λ= 10-4 Cm2/°C I= 1 μA

dT/dt= 10 °C/s

Simone Dalola Thermal Energy Harvesting for Low-Power Autonomous Sensors 13/24
 Fabrication of PZT pyroelectric elements

Piezoelectric Fabricated in thick-film technology on alumina

substrate:
Pyroelectric • screen printing of a 10 μm layer of PdAg for the bottom
electrode, drying at 150 °C and firing at 950 °C;
Ferroelectric • screen printing of a layer of ferroelectric paste,
PZT prepared dissolving a PZT powder with a ratio 4:1 in a
mixture of terpineol (96 %) and ethyl cellulose (4 %),
drying at 150 °C and firing at 950 °C;
• deposition of top electrode in the same way as the
PZT bottom electrode;
• poling of the PZT with a field of 4 MV/m at 150 °C.
Alumina

+
-

1) Random orientation of dipoles

2) Epol: Orientation of the dipoles
3) Residual polarization

Simone Dalola Thermal Energy Harvesting for Low-Power Autonomous Sensors 14/24
 Realized devices

6 mm
samples 4
Surface S Thickness
Sample ID
[mm2] [µm]
1 28 80
40 mm

2 28 180
samples 1÷3
40 mm 3 28 200
4 1600 100

S. Dalola et at. Proc. Eurosensors XXIV, September 5-8, 2010, Linz, Austria

Simone Dalola Thermal Energy Harvesting for Low-Power Autonomous Sensors 15/24
 Characterization of pyroelectric samples
R
Temperature
• Thermal profile applied by means of
Sensor T2 IP
-
VOUT Peltier cell
PZT • Temperature T of the PZT layer
Temperature +
Sensor T1 Alumina Substrate estimated by taking the average
between the temperatures T1 and T2
Peltier
driver Peltier Cell • Measurement of current IP

Simone Dalola Thermal Energy Harvesting for Low-Power Autonomous Sensors 16/24
 Characterization of pyroelectric samples
R
Temperature
• Thermal profile applied by means of
Sensor T2 IP
-
VOUT Peltier cell
PZT • Temperature T of the PZT layer
Temperature 80 + 8
Sensor T1 Alumina Substrate estimated by taking the average

Temperature rate d T/d t [°C/s]

Sample 1
between the temperatures 6T1 and T2

Pyroelectric current IP [nA]

70
Peltier
Peltier Cell Ip
Temperature T [°C/s]
driver • Measurement of current IP
60 4

50 2

40 d T/d t 0

30 -2
T
20 -4

10 -6
0 50 100 150 200 250 300
Time [s]

Simone Dalola Thermal Energy Harvesting for Low-Power Autonomous Sensors 17/24
 Characterization of pyroelectric samples
R
Temperature
• Thermal profile applied by means of
Sensor T2 IP
-
VOUT Peltier cell
200
PZT • 4
Temperature T of the PZT layer
Temperature +
Sensor T1 Sample 4 estimated by taking the average
Alumina Substrate

Temperature rate dT/dt [°C/s]

150
between the temperatures T31 and T2
Peltier Pyroelectric current IP [nA] Ip
Temperature T [°C/s]

driver Peltier Cell • Measurement of current IP 2

100

50 1
T
0 0
d T/d t
-50 -1

-100 -2

-150 -3
0 20 40 60 80 100
Time [s]

Simone Dalola Thermal Energy Harvesting for Low-Power Autonomous Sensors 18/24
 Characterization of pyroelectric samples
R
Temperature
• Thermal profile applied by means of
Sensor T2 IP
-
VOUT Peltier cell
PZT • Temperature T of the PZT layer
Temperature +
Sensor T1 150 estimated by taking the average
Alumina Substrate Sample 4
120 between the temperatures T1 and T2
Pyroelectric current Ip [nA]
Peltier
driver Peltier Cell
90 • Measurement of current IP
60
30
0
-30
-60
-90
-120
-150
-2.5 -2 -1.5 -1 -0.5 0 0.5 1 1.5 2 2.5
Temperature rate d T/d t [°C/s]

Simone Dalola Thermal Energy Harvesting for Low-Power Autonomous Sensors 19/24
 Characterization of pyroelectric samples
R
Temperature
• Thermal profile applied by means of
Sensor T2 IP
-
VOUT Peltier cell
PZT • Temperature T of the PZT layer
Temperature +
Sensor T1 Alumina Substrate estimated by taking the average
between the temperatures T1 and T2
Peltier
driver Peltier Cell • Measurement of current IP

Experimental pyroelectric
CP RP
Sample ID coefficient
[nF] [MΩ]
[C/(m2°C]
1 0.92 217 1.1·10-4
2 0.42 411 1.8·1.0-4
3 0.36 973 2.1·10-4
4 37.75 3.4 0.5·10-4

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 Characterization of pyroelectric samples

14
The pyroelectric current

Voltage across storage capacitor VS [V]

need to be rectified 12
Pyroelectric cell
D1 D2
• Full-wave bridge rectifier VS
10 IP RP CP
• Schenkel doubler D4
CS
D3
8

6 D2
Pyroelectric cell

4
IP RP CP D1 CS VS

2 Full bridge
Doubler
0
0 50 100 150 200 250
Thermal excitation cycles
Voltage across a 10 μF storage capacitor for full-wave bridge
and Schenkel doubler for sample #4 excited with a sinusoidal
temperature rate of 1.8 °C/s peak

Simone Dalola Thermal Energy Harvesting for Low-Power Autonomous Sensors 21/24
 Characterization of pyroelectric samples

14
The pyroelectric current

Voltage across storage capacitor VS [V]

need to be rectified 12
Pyroelectric cell
D1 D2
• Full-wave bridge rectifier VS
10 IP RP CP
• Schenkel doubler D4
CS
D3
8

6 D2
Pyroelectric cell

4
IP RP CP D1 CS VS

Full bridge 2
Experimental results Doubler
demonstrate that the 0
harvested energy can be 0 50 100 150 200 250
Thermal excitation cycles
compatible with use in
Voltage across a 10 μF storage capacitor for full-wave bridge
autonomous sensors Temperature
and Schenkel doubler for sample VS #4 excited with a sinusoidal
working in low-duty-cycle fluctuation temperature rate of 1.8 °C/s peak
Sensor
Interface
DC
switched-supply mode for CS RF transmission
measurement and Pyroelectric Rectifier and Sensing and Voltage
Load
converter storage capacitor switching regulator
transmission operations

Simone Dalola Thermal Energy Harvesting for Low-Power Autonomous Sensors 22/24
 Conclusions

• Two different principles for thermal energy harvesting:

– Thermoelectric effect (Seebeck)
• Spatial thermal gradient ΔT
– Pyroelectrical effect
• Temperature time-variation dT/dt

• Investigate the feasibility of micromachined thermoelectric

generators for energy harvesting application using
really available MEMS technologies

• Design, fabrication and characterization of thick-film

PZT pyroelectric devices as energy harvesting
sources able to power autonomous sensors

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