A Self-Powered Power Management Circuit for Triboelectric Nanogenerators Utilizing Gas Discharge Tube

Spark discharge is essential for extracting energy from triboelectric nanogenerators (TENGs). However, the lack of universal technical standards for most discharge switches limits their widespread application. Herein, a buck circuit utilizing gas discharge tube (GDT) as discharge switches is presented. The GDT switch significantly enhances the instantaneous power to 30 mW, 15 times higher than the direct method. When V-GDT (the breakdown voltage of GDT) >= 1000 V, it can be integrated with an LC converter, forming the GDTx-Buck circuit with a maximum energy conversion efficiency of 92.2%. When V-GDT >1000 V, GDT can combine with a transformer, forming the GDT-nT circuit, which enables higher voltage power management. The results demonstrate GDT's universal applicability, reducing circuit complexity during design. In practical applications, the circuit can illuminate 1250 LEDs at an ultra-low operating frequency of 0.6 Hz, generating electromagnetic waves during GDT breakover, which proves valuable for self-powered wireless applications. Additionally, the circuit drives parallel calculators and thermometers at 2 Hz in micro-nano energy applications and provides continuous power to high-power fire sensors. Its high integration and simple design render it highly promising for large-scale energy management applications based on TENGs.