Improvement of Thermoelectric Properties Via Combination of Nanostructurization and Elemental Doping

Autor: Jiu-xing Zhang, Ran Zhao, Fu Guo, Xin Zhang, Yu-Tian Shu, Qingmei Lu
Rok vydání: 2014
Předmět:
Zdroj: JOM. 66:2298-2308
ISSN: 1543-1851
1047-4838
Popis: Since the nanostructure was introduced to modify thermoelectric properties in 1993, many efforts have been devoted to fabricate nanostructures and investigate the electrical and thermal transports in nanostructured materials. Compared with low-dimensional materials, nanocomposites not only exhibit nanofeatures but also can be fabricated in large quantities and compatible with practical thermoelectric devices in scale and shape. This article reviews the background of nanocomposites, then the Mg2(Si0.4Sn0.6)Bi x solid solutions. High-manganese silicides with MnSi (HMS–MnSi), and In4−x Gd x Se3 compounds are selected as examples to illustrate the combination effect of nanostructure and dopants on thermoelectric properties. In situ nanostructures successfully formed during the rapid cooling and spark-plasma sintering processing and elementaldoping were achieved via melting processing. Electrical conductivities were enhanced as a result of the increased carrier concentration or carrier mobility by elemental doping. Meanwhile, thermal conductivities decreased as a result of the strong phonon scattering intensified by nanostructures. The ZTs for the specimens with optimal doping ratio were enhanced in these three types of thermoelectric materials.
Databáze: OpenAIRE
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