Energy collection generator based on electrostatic conversion mechanism

Abstract

It is commonly acknowledged that the electrostatic discharge phenomenon induced by charge transfer is accompanied by a huge loss of energy. That is why the collection and utilization of electrostatic energy are expected to alleviate the problem of the global energy supply shortage to a great extent. However, the electrostatic pulse will release hundreds of millions of joules of energy in a short time, which makes the conversion of electrostatic energy a big challenge. This paper proposes an effective electrostatic conversion mechanism to provide a potential reference solution for such a problem. Based on the above-mentioned principles, a novel electrostatic conversion device (ECD) is realized through the 180 nm bipolar complementary-metal-oxide-semiconductor double-diffused-metal-oxide-semiconductor (BCD) process. ECD can convert discrete electrostatic pulses into stable current output in a short time interval (20ns–100ns). The electrostatic voltage will also be clamped to a low level, effectively avoiding the risk of electrostatic breakdown. The experiment results show that the amplitude of the steady output electrostatic current increases with the increase in the electrostatic pulse voltage. ECD meets the application requirements of large-scale on-chip integration and can be used as a prototype device for energy collection generators to further promote the development of electrostatic energy collection technology.

Keywords

• Electrostatic energy
• Electrostatic breakdown
• Electrostatic conversion