High-throughput imaging measurements of thermoelectric figure of merit

Abstract

We demonstrate a method for the simultaneous determination of the thermoelectric figure of merit of multiple martials by means of the lock-in thermography (LIT) technique. This method is based on the thermal analyses of the transient temperature distribution induced by the Peltier effect and Joule heating, which enables high-throughput estimation of the thermal diffusivity, thermal conductivity, volumetric heat capacity, Seebeck or Peltier coefficient of the materials. The LIT-based approach has high reproducibility and reliability because it offers sensitive noncontact temperature measurements and does not require the installation of an external heater. By performing the same measurements and analyses with applying an external magnetic field, the magnetic field and/or magnetization dependences of the Seebeck or Peltier coefficient and thermal conductivity can be determined simultaneously. We demonstrate the validity of this method by using several ferromagnetic metals (Ni, Ni95Pt5, and Fe) and a nonmagnetic metal (Ti). The proposed method will be useful for materials research in thermoelectrics and spin caloritronics and for investigation of magneto-thermal and magneto-thermoelectric transport properties.

Keywords

• thermoelectric effects
• figure of merit
• thermopower
• thermal conductivity
• lock-in thermography
• magnetic materials
• spin caloritronics