Through-wall Power Transmission Using an Alternating Magnetic Field and a Multiferroic Energy Harvester

Abstract

We propose to use a magnetic field energy harvester to collect the energy in an alternating magnetic field penetrating an elastic wall. The multiferroic energy harvester consists of a piezomagnetic layer for collecting magnetic energy and a piezoelectric layer for conversion to electric energy. A theoretical analysis is performed using the linear equations for piezomagnetic, piezoelectric, and elastic materials. The output voltage, power, and efficiency are calculated. The effects of various physical and geometric parameters are examined. It is found that the electric output is sensitive to these parameters, and design optimization is needed. Significant output can be achieved near a few resonant frequencies of the structure.