Differential Microstrip Antenna for RF Energy Harvesting

Abstract

A differential microstrip antenna with improved gain for RF energy harvesting is presented in this paper. The developed antenna can be used in either center grounded or differential configuration. The antenna is designed and fabricated for GSM900 band (890-960 MHz). The antenna has a gain of 8.5 dBi at the center frequency and exhibits VSWR ≤ 2 for frequencies between 870 MHz to 1.05 GHz. The efficiency of the antenna is 80%. The developed antenna finds its application in energy harvesting, RFID tags and in wireless communication circuits, where differential inputs/outputs are needed. A complete differential RF energy harvesting system with a peak efficiency of 65.3% for a load of 3 kΩ is also developed.