Study on Low Power Maximum Power Point Tracking for Micro-Scale PV System

The purpose of this paper is to give an comprehensive consideration on maximum power point tracking (MPPT) design for micro-scale solar energy harvesting system. We focus on how to optimize MPPT strategy throughout its theoretical algorithm, circuit topology and hardware implementation. Based on a comparison results, we present an optimal design program for a low power low cost photovoltaic (PV) system. As a validation, an example is implemented with some design guidelines. This proposed micro-scale PV power system contributes to an uninterruptable power system (UPS) which could be widely used in wireless sensor network nodes, wearable biomedical devices and other embedded portable applications, where low cost, small size and high efficiency are the basic objectives.