Teaching the basics of electricity using a flexible piezoelectric generator

Raynald Seveno (1) , Thibault Dufay (1) , Mohammed El Gibari (1) , Benoit Guiffard (1) , Hong Wu Li (1) , Saber Morsli (2) , Aude Pichon (3) , Eric Tanguy (1)

1 IETR - Institut d'Électronique et des Technologies du numéRique
2 LAMP - Laboratoire des Matériaux Photovoltaïques
3 UN UFR ST - Université de Nantes - UFR des Sciences et des Techniques

Lecturer-researchers, because of the duality of their profession, can introduce students directly to their research. Stimulating student interest through practical research topics enables students to see the relevance of the teaching/learning process and thereby enhance their motivation. As a major societal issue, research on renewable energies is held in great esteem, particularly among young students with a strong interest in environmental issues. The work presented here relates to the realization of a practical class on the testing of a flexible piezoelectric generator studied as part of the 'N-air-J' regional research project. The particular characteristic of piezoelectric materials is that they produce electricity when compressed, which means that they can be used in energy recovery devices. The electrical model associated with this type of generator, consisting of an ideal current source in parallel with a linear capacitor and a load resistor, is sufficiently simple to understand following a course on electricity for first-year university students. High school students in their first year of a science and laboratory technology baccalaureate in France have already taken this practical class as part of a dissemination campaign on scientific culture.

Mots clés: Pédagogie universitaire

Domaines: Sciences de l'ingénieur [physics]

Raynald Seveno, Thibault Dufay, Mohammed El Gibari, Benoit Guiffard, Hong Wu Li, et al.. Teaching the basics of electricity using a flexible piezoelectric generator. Physics Education, 2018, 53 (4), pp.045015. ⟨10.1088/1361-6552/aabf27⟩. ⟨hal-01794929⟩