CAREER: Integrated Research and Education in Self-powered Micro-sensing for Embedded and Implantable Structural Health Monitoring

Michigan State University, East Lansing MI

Investigators

Abstract

The research objectives of this Faculty Early Career Development (CAREER) award is investigating novel battery-less, self-powered micro-sensors that can operate at fundamental limits of energy harvesting (picowatt-nanowatt power consumption) and hence can be used for long-term monitoring of fatigue in civil, mechanical and biomechanical structures. Intellectual Merit A novel piezoelectricity driven ionized-impact hot electron injection(p-IHEI) principle which exploits the computational primitives inherent in the interface physics between piezoelectric transducers and floating-gate transistors. The p-IHEI principle is being used for self-powered computation of mechanical usage statistics (strain, strain-rate, acceleration, dwell-time and spectral statistics) which are useful to prognosticate fatigue. Also a novel piezoelectricity driven harmonic radar where the piezoelectric element scavenges ambient mechanical noise to amplify and reflect harmonics of any impinging radio-frequency signals. This principle bypasses many of the signal processing steps in a conventional radio-frequency identification technique and has the potential for interrogation distances beyond 100m. Broader Impacts Battery-less micro-sensors will be developed which could become an integral part of the next generation of ?smart" structures that can self-diagnose damage and fatigue before the occurrence of any catastrophic failure. The outreach component of this project is focused on developing an electrical-civil-engineering forum in the area of electronic sensing systems for structural health monitoring. This forum is being used to train graduate and undergraduate students and students belonging to under-represented communities.