16th international conference on Sciences and Techniques of Automatic control STA'2015-PID3898-CEM

& computer engineering - STA'2015, Monastir, Tunisia, December 21-23, 2015

Design of a high performance rectenna

for wireless powering 2.45Ghz RFIDs
H. Lakhal, M. Dhieb, H. Ghariani and M. Lahiani
Laboratory of Electronics and Technologies of Information (LETI), University of Sfax
Sfax,Tunisia
[email protected]

Abstract—This paper describes the design and the diodes for their inherited properties supporting fast switching
optimization of a rectenna in ISM band, dedicated to wirelessly and detection of very small signals[2,3 and 4].
supplying RFID’s sensors, to replace or recharge existing
batteries. The circuit is based on a double voltage rectifier In fact, the Schottky diodes are nonlinear components, so they
designed and optimized at 2.45GHz with ADS software. We generate harmonics that degrades the quality of the output
detail a new methodology to design and optimize a rectenna
signal and causes energy losses. Hence, the integration of
circuit.
As a result, excellent performance is achieved in terms of both filters is deemed necessary, to improve efficiency and reduce
output voltage level and RF to DC conversion efficiency.The energy losses.However, the insertion of a filter at the output
described rectenna reachesapproximately a conversion efficiency causes problems of matching impedance between the antenna
of 90% and produces 6Volt at 8 dBm enabling hence some RFID and the rest of the circuit while, the maximum power transfer
chips. occurs when the circuit is matched with the antenna[5 and
 6].The big challenge is to combine all of these items efficiently
Keywords — Rectenna; WPT; RF to DC conversion; efficiency; and optimally.
microwave; RF;RFID’s sensors
In this paper, we start withpresenting a comparison of the
characteristics of the diodes and different rectifiers’ topologies
I. INTRODUCTION in order to select the diode and the topology that
In the recent years, Wireless Power Transmission (WPT), providesmaximumoutput voltage and conversion efficiency.
which is a new way of supplying energy, has gained great Besides, in order to improve the performance of the chosen
interest. The power is in fact transmitted as microwaves, circuit, we identify the factors affecting the performance. After
wirelessly, to remote locations where conventional wires use is that,we demonstrate that the global optimization is the best
inherently expensive, inconvenient or impossible. method to improve the performance of a rectenna.Finally, we
The key component forming WPT systems is the rectenna assess the performance of the developed system.
(rectifying-antenna). It converts the received Radio-Frequency
II. CHOICE OF RECTIFIER DIODE
(RF) power into DC power, which can then power an
electronic circuit.It is composed of a receiving antenna, an For microwave frequency, the majority of rectifier circuit uses
input HF filter, which is a low pass filter that rejects harmonics one of the three Schottky diode HSMS2820, HSMS2850 and
created by the nonlinear diode and acts as a matching circuit HSMS2860 fore mostly when theinput power does not exceed
between the antenna and the rectifier, an RF-DC rectifier, an one watt (30dBm)[7 and 8].
output bypass capacitor and a resistive load, which models the
feed as shown in“Fig. 1”. TABLE I. CHARACTERISTICS OF DIFFERENT DIODES HSMS2820,
HSMS2850 AND HSMS2860

Characteristics of the HSMS2820 HSMS2850 HSMS2860

diodes [9] [10] [11]

Adaptation
DC Breakdown voltage Bv(v) 15 3.8 7
Rectifier
+ RLOAD
RF-DC Filter Series resistance
6 25 5
RF Filter Rs(Ÿ)
Threshold voltageV0(v) 0.65 0.35 0.65
Figure 1. A block diagram ofthe rectenna andthe resistive load[1]
JunctioncapacitanceCj0(pF) 0.7 0.18 0.18
The complexity of designinga rectifier circuit consists
ofconnecting its various comprising blocks. Generally, the RF-
DC converter is based on the use of one or more Schottky The comparison of the RF-DC conversion efficiency of
different diodes is shown in “fig.2”.

978-1-4673-9234-1/15/$31.00 ©2015 IEEE 138

The RF-DC conversion efficiencyis calculated by the equation for all our simulations, since it is almost a complete tool that
(1): contains several simulation controllers for design and
௉ ௏ ଶ optimization of RF circuits. A RF generator with an output
ߟ ൌ ஽஼ ൌ ஽஼ % (1) impedance of 50 ȍ simulates the antenna.
௉௜௡ ோ௅ ௉௜௡
Where: VDC is the DC voltage of the rectenna (V), RL is the
impedance of the resistive load (ȍ), Pin is the input power,
captured by the receiving antenna (W) and PDC is the output
DC power of the rectenna (W).
“Fig.2” shows that the HSMS2850 characterized by lower
threshold voltage(V0), asshown in “table. I”,is best suited for
very low powers than the other two diodes. However,with the
increase of the level ofinput power, the current through ;ĂͿSeries-mounted diode ;ďͿShunt-mounted diode
HSMS2850 becomes important and therefore the ohmic losses
become more important than the surplus power provided,
which explains the decrease in conversion efficiency. Thus,
HSMS2860 offers better returns.
Similarly, when the incident power reaches the critical
power corresponding to the maximum efficiency of
HSMS2860, HSMS2820 gives better results because its ;ĐͿ Dual voltage configuration
breakdown voltage is higher, as shown in “table. I”, and
therefore its critical power is also higher.
The results presented shows that the choice of the diode is
dependent on thelevel of input power. In fact, for very low
power, less than 7dBm, it is preferable to use diodes with a low
junction capacitance and a low threshold voltage.In terms of
low power less than 18dBm but above 7dBm, it is preferable to
use diodes with low junction capacitance and low series ;ĚͿBridge configuration
resistance even if it means a high threshold voltage.Finally, for
higher powers, it is preferred to use diodes with a high value of Figure 3. The different configurations of rectenna circuit:(a) Series- mounted
the breakdown voltage.In our application, we use an input diode, (b) Shunt-mounted diode, (c) Dual voltage configuration, (d)
Bridge configuration
power between 5dBm and15dBm, sothe HSMS2860 was
chosen.
“Fig.4” and “Fig.5” show that the double voltage configuration
 provides better results compared to other configurations in
+606 terms of both conversion efficiency and output voltage.

+606

+606



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3LQG%P
Figure 2. The conversion efficiency versus input power.

III. CHOICE OF TOPOLOGIE

Depending on the diodes positions in the rectifier, several Figure 4. The conversion efficiency versus input power for different
configurations can be used[12,13and14]: series mounted diode configurations
(Fig.3 a) Shunt mounted diode (Fig. 3 b), double voltage circuit
(Fig.3 c) and standard bridge topology(Fig.3 d).
In this paragraph, we simulate the RF-DC efficiency of
different topologies. Advanced design system (ADS) is used

139
 Figure 6. The output voltage versus input power for different load

Figure 5. The output voltage versus input power for different configurations

Figure 7. The conversion efficiency versus input power for different load
IV. CHARACTERISTICS OF THE RECTENNA
V. MATCHING IMPEDANCE
The performance of a rectenna is usually,evaluated using two
parameters: the level of its output voltage and its RF-DC The first step to improve the performance of a rectenna is to
conversion efficiency [15, 16, and 17]. In this section,we study reduce reflection loss.
the factors affecting the conversion efficiency and the output For the simulation of the reflection coefficient S11and the input
voltage in double voltage configuration. impedance, it is important, to usethe LSSP(Large-Signal-S-
“Fig.6” shows that the output voltage of the rectenna increases Parameter) type of simulator and not the S-Parameter(SP) type
with RF power. After the optimal point, performance begins to of simulator.The reason for this is that LSSP-simulator takes
decline even if the DC input power continues to increase into account non-linearity of the diode, it combines Harmonic-
because the joule losses are prevailing at high power. The Balance(HB) and SP, unlike the simulation S-Parameter which
output voltage finally tends to a limit value. is a "small signal" simulation and does not account for the
“Fig.7” shows that the efficiency increases with the increase of nonlinearity of the diode
the RF power. However, it is limited by the higher-order [18,19and20].“Fig.8”,”Fig.9”and“Fig.10”show a comparison
harmonics generation. It decreases rapidly as soon as the beteween the simulators LSSP et S-parameters for the
voltage across the diode reaches the reverse breakdown reflextion coefficient S11, the real and the imaginary part of
voltage (BV). the input impedance. It is clear, as shown in “Fig.8”,”Fig.9”
and “Fig.10”there is a difference between the two simulators
The conversion efficiency and the output voltage are not in terms of the reflection coefficient, the real and the
affected in the same way: optimized voltage rectenna has a
imagianry parts of the input impedance Zin and using SP
larger optimum load compared to an optimized efficiency would give us wrong results.
5HIOHFWLRQFRHIILFLHQW6

rectenna. Figure 8. The reflection coefficient S11found by S-param and LSSP

140
 Figure 11. Simplified diagram of the impedances of the rectanna circuit

In fact, the transfer of power from the antenna(Za) to the

rectifieris maximum when the input impedance of the antenna
is equal to the complex conjugate value of the input impedance
of the rectifier circuit (Zin): Za=[Zin]*, with Za=50Ÿ and
5HDOSDURI=LQ

Zin=88−j*28.2
Here, the imaginary part:-28.2*j, so we have to compensate it
by adding a series inductance between the antenna and the
diode.
Thus, imag (Zin) = 28.24*j = L*w*j with f =
2.45GHz,therefore L = 1.83 nH.
“Fig.12” shows that the addition of inductance minimized
reflection losses but “Fig13"shows that the inductance 1.83nH
did not offset the imaginary part. The value that compensates
the imaginary part, found by visual simulation
isL=1.99nH.This difference is due to the nonlinear behavior of
Figure 9. The real part of Zin found by S-param and LSSP
the circuit. Indeed, the inductance value is,calculated for a
value of Zin, measured before addingthe inductance. But, by
adding the inductance in the circuit, the impedance of the
diode is changed, and consequently, the frequency behavior of
the diode is also, changed. Therefore, the calculated value
assuming a linear behavior of the diode is slightly different
from the actual optimum value.
5HIOHFWLRQFRHIILFLHQW6

Figure 10. The imaginary part of Zin found by S-param and LSSP

In the literature, most researchers look to find a reflection

coefficient of less than -10dB to judge the matching impedance
acceptable and good. Here, we aim to convert a very low power
so we aim to find the best method for matching impedance and
reducing reflection loss. Figure 12. Reflection coefficient S11 via frequency

The rectifier circuit can be,modeled by an impedance Zin that

acts as the load for the antenna as shown in (“Fig.11”).
5HDODQGLPDJLQDU\SDUWVRI=LQ

Ă
Rectifier
Z
RF-DC ŝŶ
Z
sŝŶ

Figure 13. Real and imaginary part of Zin via

ŶƚĞŶŶĂ ZĞĐƚŝĨŝĞƌZ&Ͳ frequency

141
In order to find better results, we use the Smith Chart matching 
tool included in Agilent ADS, which allows us synthesizing a LQGHSP 
 SORWBYVUHDO+%=LQIU 
filter for the matching impedance. The tool designed the P
topology of the matching network, choosing an inductance L in 
series(L=3nH) with a capacitor in shunt(C = 435.24fF) as we
can see in “Fig.14”. 

LQGHSP 

SORWBYVLPDJ+%=LQIU 
 P




          

)UHTXHQF\*+]
Figure 16. Real and imaginary part of Zin after adding the filter of Smith chart

VI. THE OPTIMIZATION OF THE RECTIFIER

In this section, we demonstrate that to find the best matching
impedance and performance in term of both conversion
efficiency and output voltage, we have to usethe optimization
included in ADS.
It consists of trial and error simulation that tries to achieve
performances goals: best behaviour in matching impedance,
output voltage and conversion efficiency.
Figure 14. Adaptation of impedance by Smith chart tool
There are many search methods included in ADS [21] but the
The results found after adding smith chart filter are shown in most used is the hybridmethod, which is a combination of two
“Fig.15”and “Fig.16”.It is clear; there is an improvement in search methods: Random and Quasi-Newton search methods.
term of the reflection coefficient, real and imaginary part of It offers the ability to find quicklya minimum, using the fewest
the rectifier (“Fig.14”). However, we are not in the best possible circuit analyses (this is the strength of Quasi-Newton
situation of matching impedance: Za is a slightly different method), and the possibility to find the global cost minimum
fromZin*. This is because the filter is designed for a even in the presence of many local minima (this is the strength
supposedly fixed input impedance, or the addition of the filter of Random method).
in the circuit, changes the input impedance. As a goals, we look to find a set of values componentL and C
of the circuit obtained by Smith chart, minimizing the value of

S11 at 2.45GHz, assuringreal(Zin)=50, imag(Zin)=0 and
maximizing the conversion efficiency (“Fig.17”).
 LQGHSP 
SORWBYVG%+%6IU 
5HIOHFWLRQFRHIILFLHQW6





 P







          

)UHTXHQF\*+] Figure 17. Optimisation of the Smith chart circuit

Figure 15. Reflection coefficient S11after adding the filter ofSmith chart
“Fig.18” shows the results of the optimization of the circuit
according to the frequency.The value of the S11 parameter
reaches a minimum of about -43 dB at 2.45 GHz and Zin=
Za*(“Fig.19”), which means a very good matchingimpedance.
The circuit obtained by the optimization process is centered at
2.45 GHz unlike the Smith chart circuit(“Fig.15”).This, results
from the fact that the smith chart tool uses the S-Parameter

142
simulation while the optimization uses the LSSP simulator. It is clear that using the global optimization is the best method
Conclude that the optimization of the circuit offers best set to match the impedance between the antenna and the rectifier
ofvalues component. circuit.
5HIOHFWLRQFRHIILFLHQW6

5HIOHFWLRQFRHIILFLHQW6
Figure 18. Reflection coeficient S11 by hybrid optimisation for the smith
5HDODQGLPDJLQDU\SDUWVRI=LQ

chart circuit

Figure 19. Real and imaginary part of Zin by hybrid optimisation for the smith
chart circuit Figure 21. Reflection coefficient S11for the circuit with L

In the following, we present the result of the optimization of Figure 22. Real and imaginary part after optimising the circuit with L
the circuit with an inductance in the input filter. We look to
find the best set of components values that minimizes S11 and Now, we compare the conversion efficiency and the output
maximizes rectenna performance (“Fig.20”). voltage of two circuits; Circuit1 is the optimized circuit with
filter of smith chart and circuit2 is the optimized circuit with an
inductance as a RF-filter.

It is clear in “Fig.23”, that the conversion efficiency of the

circuit2is better than the conversion efficiency of circuit 1. It
reaches 90% at 8dBm. “Fig.24” demonstrates that for an input
power of 8dBm the output power is 7.4 dbm, which means
90% as efficiency. It is a good result compared to other studies
[22, 23 and24].

In addition, “Fig.25” shows that the output voltage of the

circuit2 is better than the output voltage of the circuit1. At
8dBm, it provides 6 volts when the circuit1 provides just 1.5
Figure 20. Optimisation of the circuit with inductance in the input filter volts.

143
 VII. EVALUATION OF THE PERFORMANCE OF THE DEVEOLPED
CIRCUIT
We present in “table.II”, a comparison between the
performance of our circuit and other simulations and not
measurements of other studies. As we see, our circuit offers
improvements in terms of both conversion efficiency and
output voltage.
(IILFLHQF\

TABLE II. EVALUATION OF OUR CIRCUIT

At 8dBm [22] [6] [23] Our

circuit
Conversion 85 60 70 90
efficiency
(%)
Vout(v) 2.5 1.7 2 6

VIII. CONCLUSION
This paper detailed the design of rectenna at 2.45 GHz,
 P dedicated to wireless supply RFID’s sensors. We demonstrated
that the most appropriate topology for our application is the

HSMS2860 double voltage configuration. In order to facilitate
 the choice of rectenna’s component, we detailed the factors
affecting the RF-DC conversion efficiency and the output
 signal.In addition, we demonstrated that the global
LQGHSP  optimization is the best method to improve the performance of

SORWBYV3RXWBG%P3LQ  a rectenna.The proposed rectenna in this paper shows high
performance, in term of both conversion efficiency and output

voltage. It achieves, at an input power of 8 dBm and 2.45GHz,
 a conversion efficiency of90% and an output voltage of 6Volt,
which are good performance and can supply RFID’s sensors, to
 replace or recharge existing batteries.
      

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