Range characterization of backscatter Wireless Sensor Networks

Radios are a major consumer of energy in wireless sensor nodes. Reduction of this energy consumption can be a large push towards a cost-effective realization of perpetual wireless sensor networks (perpetual WSN). Backscatter radio is an interesting candidate technology for realizing this objective since it can significantly reduce the power and energy spent on radio transmission. Backscatter radio enjoys several favourable properties for a sensor node, such as micro-watt level power consumption of data communication, however, it’s wide-spread usage is constrained by very limited range. This thesis aims to improve the range of backscatter transceiver(s) by investigating the relationship between range and radio properties such as sensitivity, communication throughput and power levels. This thesis describes a design space exploration tailoring towards the specific requirements of WSNs. The design and implementation of a backscatter transceiver is demonstrated while reviewing the applicability to perpetual WSN.