Invited Talk: Thermal Energy Harvesting with Thermo Life

The continuous miniaturization and reduction of power consumption in modern electronic devices enables and demands the employment of alternative energy sources. Primary batteries as well-established energy sources are excessive in weight and size, and limit the lifespan and autonomy of electronic devices because of the need of replacement, making them unsuitable in systems with limited accessibility or in micro sensor networks with a high quantity of powered devices. These facts have lead to worldwide research in the field of energy harvesting devices in the last few years. The thermoelectric converter Thermo Life is a unique, small and compact energy source for micro electronic and sensor systems wherever a temperature difference exists in any environment. The thermal energy harvester is capable of producing an output power of a few 10 to 100 uW and voltages in the Voltrange from small temperature gradients of only a few Kelvin.