Efficient, 50 mV startup, with transient settling time <5 ms, energy harvesting system for thermoelectric generator.

A prototype chip fabricated in 130 nm CMOS technology, designed to extract maximum power from a thermoelectric generator (TEG) is presented. In the measurements, the TEG is modelled by a voltage source (VTEG) with a series resistance of 5 Ω. The prototype is fully electric, starts from VTEG = 50 mV and it can extract 60% (at 50 mV) to 65% (at 200 mV) of the available power. Also by using present circuit schematic, an improved transient response of 3 ms (at 50 mV) and startup voltage of 50 mV is achieved. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]