Researchers at Duke University’s Pratt School of Engineering have configured inexpensive materials and tuned them to capture microwave signals to design a power-harvesting device with efficiency similar to that of modern solar powers.
The device operates on a similar principle as solar panels which convert light energy into electrical current, but this new device could be tuned to harvest microwave signals to direct current voltage capable of recharging a cell phone battery or other small device. The signal that the device harvests could be from other energy sources, including satellite signals, sound signals or Wi-Fi signals.
Read more about the research being performed at Duke University.