Triboelectric Harvesting by a Dual-Tip Peak Power Multiplier under Airtight Condition

Triboelectric nanogenerators (TENGs) are effective for harvesting mechanical energy and converting into electricity. Such devices have high output voltage and low current, appearing as high output impedance. Impedance mismatches involving these devices create challenges in power usage, storage, and management. Herein, a dual-tip-assisted TENG is developed and its electrical output performance under airtight condition is investigated. The generated charges can rapidly accumulate at the dual tip and produce a high potential difference. Such a potential difference accelerates the induced charges' transfer speed and quantity. Gas discharge occurs once the potential exceeds some threshold, providing a conduction path for accumulated charges. With the help of such dual-tip peak power multiplier, TENG's peak-to-peak short-circuit current and open-circuit voltage are 433% and 145% higher, respectively. The peak power reaches a maximum of 34.8 mW with a 100 k omega load resistance, whereas that of the original TENG is 1.5 mW with a 100 M omega load resistance, indicating 22.2 times of peak power increase and an optimal matching impedance decrease by three orders of magnitude. The results indicate that this multiplier is meaningful for the optimization of TENG's output and impedance.