Ultrawideband Rectifier With Extended Dynamic-Power-Range Based on Wideband Impedance Compression Network

This article proposes an ultrawideband rectifier with high efficiency at wide input power range. It consists of a wideband impedance compression network (WICN) and two subrectifiers. The proposed impedance compression network (ICN) offers a more universal design method and higher design flexibility. Thus, the impedance variation of subrectifiers at wide input power range can be reduced at several frequencies. With proper setting of these frequencies, the rectifier can maintain stable, high efficiency at wideband, and wide input power range simultaneously. Besides, the proposed network can also realize impedance matching, hence saving extra matching components. The mechanism of the proposed rectifier is analyzed. For verification, a prototype is implemented and measured. The optimal efficiency of 72.2% is found at 6.5 dBm and 1.2 GHz. The prototype can maintain an efficiency beyond 70% of the peak value at frequencies ranging from 1.0 to 2.7 GHz. The relative bandwidth (91.9%) is so far the widest among the rectifiers with resistance compression networks (RCNs)/ICNs. At the operating band, the rectifier can maintain an efficiency beyond 70% of the peak at input power ranging from −6.2 to 13 dBm. The total size is as compact as
$0.19\lambda \times 0.16\lambda $
at the central frequency.