Imec RF IC runs for 20 years on an AAA battery

Imec has produced a cheap plastic 8-bit RFID transponder IC which could run for 20 years on an AAA battery.

The chip is made in thin-film technology on plastic film. It operates at a supply voltage of 0.55V while consuming 2.5µW.

It can be made on a 25µm thin foil in a similar process flow to LCD manufacturing and can be embedded in security documents, smart packaging, disposable electronics or textiles.

The chip paves the way for universal sensing applications, such as item level RFID tagging, body area networks (BAN) and environmental monitoring, that require prolonged remote autonomy, and ultimate thinness, flexibility and robustness.

IoT envisages a society where billions of autonomous sensor nodes are seamlessly integrated into objects, in the environment and on human bodies, operating independently for months, interacting with each other and connecting to the internet.

To enable IoT, Imec is leveraging its expertise in thin-film electronics, ultra-low power electronics and sensing, in this way tackling the technology roadblocks for universal sensing applications that lie ahead.

david manners

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via Yuichun