Miniscule device could help preserve the battery life of tiny sensors

Researchers from MIT and elsewhere have built a wake-up receiver that communicates using terahertz waves, which enabled them to produce a chip more than 10 times smaller than similar devices. Their receiver, which also includes authentication to protect it from a certain type of attack, could help preserve the battery life of tiny sensors or robots. Credits : Image: Jose-Luis Olivares/MIT with figure courtesy of the researchers Researchers demonstrate a low-power "wake-up" receiver one-tenth the size of other devices. Scientists are striving to develop ever-smaller internet-of-things devices, like sensors tinier than a fingertip that could make nearly any object trackable. These diminutive sensors have miniscule batteries which are often nearly impossible to replace, so engineers incorporate wake-up receivers that keep devices in low-power "sleep" mode when not in use, preserving battery life. Researchers at MIT have developed a new wake-up receiver that is less than one-tenth the size of previous devices and consumes only a few microwatts of power. Their receiver also incorporates a low-power, built-in authentication system, which protects the device from a certain type of attack that could quickly drain its battery.