Construction of a hierarchical multiscale conducting network for enhanced thermoelectric response in organic PEDOT:PSS based nanocomposites

Abstract

Thermoelectric technology, which is characterized by the interconversion between heat and electricity, is demonstrated as an efficient and environmentally friendly route for thermal energy harvesting and solid-state cooling devices. The pursuit for high-performance room temperature thermoelectric materials is of significant interest. Here, we proposed a design strategy to dramatically improve the thermoelectric response by constructing a hierarchical multiscale conductor network (AgNWs/CNT) in polymer matrix (PEDOT:PSS). At the optimized composition, the highest Seebeck coefficient and electrical conductivity of base treated ternary PEDOT:PSS/AgNWs/CNT composite are optimized to be 58.6 μV K−1 and ∼1950 S cm−1. Correspondingly, the power factor is thus calculated to be on the order of 670 μW m−1 K−2, which is among one of the highest values compared with previous reports. The underlying mechanism is illustrated based on detailed structure, morphology and electron transport quantification. This work affords a novel strategy for the future development of high-performance room temperature nanocomposite thermoelectrics.

Keywords

• PEDOT:PSS
• Thermoelectrics
• Energy harvesting
• Hierarchical structure
• Seebeck coefficient