From Heat to Power: Assessing Thermoelectric Energy Harvesting for Self-sustainable Sensors

Abstract

Autonomy and self-sustainability are essential for the next generation of Internet of Things (IoT) and sensing devices. Harnessing electrical energy from temperature gradients, thermoelectric generators (TEGs) have great potential to power these devices for extended time periods. Analyzing the performance of transducers and converters is crucial for designing compact, low-power systems. This work highlights the importance of a comprehensive experimental evaluation of advanced low-voltage, high-efficiency conversion architectures in conjunction with TEGs. Characterization of multiple transducers and converters demonstrates the potential and limitations of thermoelectric energy harvesting (EH), showcasing the possibility of supplying a power of 0.65 µW/cm 2 harvested from a temperature gradient of only 1 K and 150 µW/cm 2 for 10 K. Conversion efficiencies of 75 % are achievable despite high voltage conversion ratios of 1:60.