Integrated Computational Materials, Process and Product Engineering – IC-MPPE 2022

The Internet of Things (IoT) is based on a network of trillions of electronic components such as sensors and actuators, which must communicate with one another and perform intelligent action on the environment. Autonomous, wireless operation is the key enabling factor for most IoT applications, which poses significant challenges for the energy supply of such devices. In many cases, in fact, the usage of grid connection or replaceable batteries is neither possible nor sustainable. The greenest and most efficient way to realize energy autonomous IoT devices is thus to combine energy harvesting modules with energy storing elements.

Ceramic ultracapacitors are attractive as energy storage materials for the IoT, because they combine high power density with high energy density. This way, the stored energy is quickly available for fast operation (i.e. to supply wireless transmission/receival peaks) and can be supplied over hours – depending on the power budget of the IoT device. In this presentation, an overview will be given on ceramic ultracapacitors from the atomistic description of energy density to the peculiarities of industrial processes. In particular, it will be focused on the interplay of chemical composition, microstructure, and system architecture, suggesting possible ways how these devices could be further improved or implemented.