Obstacle-Immune Microwave Wireless Power Transfer System Based on Amplitude-Dependent Caustic Metasurface

Area of Science:

• Electromagnetics
• Metamaterials
• Wireless Power Transfer

Background:

• Internet of Everything (IoE) advancements necessitate efficient wireless charging.
• High-power microwave wireless power transfer (MWPT) faces environmental and safety challenges.
• Existing MWPT systems lack robust obstacle avoidance and safety mechanisms.

Purpose of the Study:

• To propose a novel Amplitude-Dependent Caustic Metasurface (ADCMs) design for generating self-bending Radio Frequency Circular Airy Beams (RFCAB).
• To address obstacle avoidance and safety concerns in high-power MWPT systems.
• To enable flexible control over energy focus positioning and beam curvature.

Main Methods:

• Design of ADCMs based on caustic theory to generate RFCAB.
• Utilizing a uniform circular array (UCA) feed architecture emitting vortex electromagnetic waves.
• Employing 1/3 wavelength units and a two-layer substrate for efficient beam generation with full phase coverage.

Main Results:

• Demonstrated generation of RFCAB with arbitrary curvatures and controlled energy focus.
• Validated obstacle avoidance and safety features through simulations and experiments.
• Achieved high transmittance and full 360° phase coverage with the designed ADCMs.

Conclusions:

• The ADCMs-based MWPT system effectively overcomes obstacle avoidance and safety issues.
• This technology offers a promising solution for safe and efficient wireless charging in IoE applications.
• The proposed method provides flexible control for advanced MWPT applications.