Recent progress in MEMS electret generator for energy harvesting

Energy harvesting is a method by which energy naturally present in the environment is captured and then converted into electricity for use in low‐power electronics. Among the various energy sources, structural vibration is believed to be useful for powering wireless sensors in various applications such as sensor network and structural health monitoring. In the present paper, after a brief introduction to electret materials and charging technologies, recent progress in microelectromechanical systems (MEMS) electret generators is reviewed. © 2011 Institute of Electrical Engineers of Japan. Published by John Wiley & Sons, Inc.