Modelling of dielectric polymers for energy scavenging applications

C. Jean-Mistral (1) , Skandar Basrour (2) , J.J. Chaillout (1)

1 CEA-LETI - Commissariat à l'énergie atomique et aux énergies alternatives - Laboratoire d'Electronique et de Technologie de l'Information
2 TIMA - Techniques de l'Informatique et de la Microélectronique pour l'Architecture des systèmes intégrés

An increasing number of scavenging applications use dielectric polymers: for instance, on the heel of a shoe, behind the knee, on a navy buoy, etc. This emerging technology has the potential to be an alternative to traditional, well-known solutions using piezoelectricity or electromagnetism. Indeed, dielectric polymers are suitable for creating flexible and innovative structures working in a quasi-static range. Nevertheless, current analytical models of dielectric polymers in generator mode are too simple and not sufficiently predictive. This paper reports a more reliable method for modelling dielectric generators. This method is a tool for designing any plane structure. It can be used to calculate performance or to optimize a given structure. Moreover, it is modular and can be adapted to any kind of dielectric material and any plane structure. The method is illustrated on a biaxial plane generator comprising 3M's VHB 4910 polymer and conductive silver grease electrodes. Experiment data are provided to validate the analytical model and thus the whole method.

Mots clés: Dielectric polymers

Domaines: Micro et nanotechnologies/Microélectronique

C. Jean-Mistral, Skandar Basrour, J.J. Chaillout. Modelling of dielectric polymers for energy scavenging applications. Smart Materials and Structures, 2010, 19 (10), pp.105006. ⟨10.1088/0964-1726/19/10/105006⟩. ⟨hal-00550041⟩