A Regulated Charge Pump With a Low-Power Integrated Optimum Power Point Tracking Algorithm for Indoor Solar Energy Harvesting

Author

Kim, Jungmoon ; Kim, Jihwan ; Kim, Chulwoo

Author_Institution

Dept. of Electr. Eng., Korea Univ., Seoul, South Korea

Volume

58

Issue

12

fYear

2011

Firstpage

802

Lastpage

806

Abstract

This brief presents a regulated charge pump (CP) with an integrated optimum power point tracking (OPPT) algorithm designed for indoor solar energy harvesting. The proposed OPPT circuit does not require a current sensor that consumes power proportionally to the load. The solar cell voltage is regulated at the optimum power point; the CP output is regulated according to the target voltage. The controller of the OPPT circuit and CP dissipates only 450 nW; thus, the proposed technique is appropriate for indoor solar energy harvesting applications under dim lighting conditions.

Keywords

charge pump circuits; energy harvesting; indoor environment; low-power electronics; maximum power point trackers; sensors; solar cells; tracking; CP dissipation; OPPT circuit; current sensor; dim lighting condition; indoor solar energy harvesting; low-power integrated optimum power point tracking algorithm; regulated charge pump; solar cell voltage; Batteries; Capacitors; Photovoltaic cells; Power generation; Solar energy; Solid state circuits; Voltage control; Wireless sensor networks; Battery charger; charge pump (CP); maximum power point tracking (MPPT); optimum power point tracking (OPPT); photovoltaic (PV) systems; solar energy harvesting; wireless sensor networks (WSNs);

fLanguage

English

Journal_Title

Circuits and Systems II: Express Briefs, IEEE Transactions on

Publisher

ieee

ISSN

1549-7747

Type

jour

DOI

10.1109/TCSII.2011.2173971

Filename

6082411