iSurface: Self-Powered Reconfigurable Intelligent Surfaces with Wireless Power Transfer

This article introduces iSurface, the first-of-its-kind self-powered reconfigurable intelligent surface (RIS) that can engineer ambient wireless propagations in the environment via a reconfigurable RF layer. Additionally, it can charge multiple devices close to the surface via power transfer enabled by a reconfigurable magnetic resonance layer. We develop a resonance coupling power distribution framework that allows flexible and on-demand power spots with power flow paths over 2D and 3D resonator surfaces to power RIS units and wirelessly charge devices. We design reconfigurable source and extender resonators and validate the iSurface prototype through simulation, experiments, and a real application demonstration. Our results demonstrate the feasibility of creating fully reconfigurable power spots with the deliverable power ranging from 0-16 W through different power flow paths and for different types of surfaces.