Environmental comparison of energy scavenging technologies for self-sufficient micro system applications

Micro systems with autonomous energy supply exhibit a high potential for the realisation of highly miniaturised, cost- and material-efficient wireless sensing applications. The conversion of electromagnetic, thermal and kinetic energy from the ambient environment into electric energy by means of 'energy scavenging' is an approach to support or even replace primary batteries to in long-term applications. While solar cells are already well established in mass products, the current market entry of miniaturized thermoelectric and electromechanical transducers paves the way for the implementation of various energy scavenging technologies in the future. An approach to analyse the environmental impact of various technical solutions to power a micro system is presented in this poster.