The e-peas AEM10940 IC utilizes the company’s unique proprietary energy management technology in order to maximize the efficiency with which electronic hardware draws energy from the ambient environment. This device, which is now in full scale production, is set to have major implications for the various power-frugal sensing applications currently emerging – including those covering all aspects of the Internet of Things (IoT), wearable technology, home automation, industrial monitoring and wireless geolocation, etc.
The highly integrated AEM10940 comprises an ultra-low power boost converter (exhibiting industry-leading 94% efficiency levels), along with voltage reference, energy management and LDO regulator elements. Thanks to its innovative cold-start circuitry, the device can be brought into active operation even when there is minimal energy left – an input voltage of just 380mV and a mere 11μW of power proving to be more than sufficient.
The IC harvests available input power up to 50mW from an allocated energy source, such as a photovoltaic cell. Its boost converter (which has an input voltage range that spans from 100mV to 2.5V) exploits this for the rapid charging of any connected energy storage reserve, such as a Li-Ion battery, thin film battery, or conventional-/super-capacitor. It enables the charge rate to be almost 3x that of alternative solutions currently on the market.
