Electret-based microgenerators under sinusoidal excitations: an analytical modeling

The fast-growing number of mobile and wearable applications has driven several innovations in small-scale electret-based energy harvesting due to the compatibility with standard microfabrication processes and the ability to generate electrical energy from ambient vibrations. However, the current modeling methods used to design these small scale transducers or microgenerators are applicable only for constant-speed rotations and small sinusoidal translations, while in practice, large amplitude sinusoidal vibrations can happen. Therefore, in this paper, we formulate an analytical model for electret-based microgenerators under general sinusoidal excitations. The proposed model is validated using finite element modeling combined with numerical simulation approaches presented in the literature. The new model demonstrates a good agreement in estimating both the output voltage and power of the microgenerator. This new model provides useful insights into the microgenerator operating mechanism and design trade-offs, and therefore, can be utilized in the design and performance optimization of these small structures.