Enhancement of electrical conductivity of Zn4Sb3 by addition of ZnO particles

Abstract

We have investigated the effect of the addition of 50 nm ZnO particles on the thermoelectric material Zn4Sb3 from the view point of the electrical conduction. The conductivity of Zn4Sb3 reached its maximum value upon the addition of 0.3 wt. % of ZnO particles. This value was four times larger than that of the undoped sample. The mobility also displayed the same trend as the conductivity, indicating that the change in the conductivity of Zn4Sb3 by the addition of ZnO particles was attributable to the ZnO content dependence of the mobility.