Enhanced thermoelectric performance of PbTe bulk materials with figure of merit zT >2 by multi-functional alloying

Tiezheng Fu; Xianqiang Yue; Haijun Wu; Chenguang Fu; Tiejun Zhu; Xiaohua Liu; Lipeng Hu; Pingjun Ying; Jiaqing He; Xinbing Zhao

doi:10.1016/j.jmat.2016.05.005

Journal of Materiomics (Jun 2016)

Enhanced thermoelectric performance of PbTe bulk materials with figure of merit zT >2 by multi-functional alloying

Tiezheng Fu,
Xianqiang Yue,
Haijun Wu,
Chenguang Fu,
Tiejun Zhu,
Xiaohua Liu,
Lipeng Hu,
Pingjun Ying,
Jiaqing He,
Xinbing Zhao

Affiliations

Tiezheng Fu: State Key Laboratory of Silicon Materials, School of Materials Science and Engineering, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou 310027, China
Xianqiang Yue: State Key Laboratory of Silicon Materials, School of Materials Science and Engineering, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou 310027, China
Haijun Wu: Department of Physics, South University of Science and Technology of China, Shenzhen 518055, China
Chenguang Fu: State Key Laboratory of Silicon Materials, School of Materials Science and Engineering, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou 310027, China
Tiejun Zhu: State Key Laboratory of Silicon Materials, School of Materials Science and Engineering, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou 310027, China
Xiaohua Liu: State Key Laboratory of Silicon Materials, School of Materials Science and Engineering, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou 310027, China
Lipeng Hu: State Key Laboratory of Silicon Materials, School of Materials Science and Engineering, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou 310027, China
Pingjun Ying: State Key Laboratory of Silicon Materials, School of Materials Science and Engineering, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou 310027, China
Jiaqing He: Department of Physics, South University of Science and Technology of China, Shenzhen 518055, China
Xinbing Zhao: State Key Laboratory of Silicon Materials, School of Materials Science and Engineering, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou 310027, China

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jmat.2016.05.005
Journal volume & issue: Vol. 2, no. 2
pp. 141 – 149

Abstract

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Forming solid solutions in PbTe based materials can simultaneously reduce lattice thermal conductivity and engineer the band structure to enhance the electrical properties. In this paper, quaternary alloys of Pb1−xMgxTe0.8Se0.2 were designed to improve the figure of merit zT. The significant roles of MgTe in enhancing electrical properties and reducing thermal conductivity of PbTe0.8Se0.2 were investigated. A maximum zT of ∼2.2 at 820 K was achieved in PbTe0.8Se0.2 with 8% MgTe. Subsequently, a large dimension bulk (∼200 g, Φ42 mm × 18 mm) was fabricated and its homogeneity and the repeatability of high zT values were determined. The results show that high zT ∼2.0 can also be achieved even in such a large sample. These results highlight the multi-functional roles of quaternary alloying with Mg and Se, and demonstrate the realistic prospect of large-scale commercial fabrication in high performance PbTe-based thermoelectric materials.

Published in Journal of Materiomics

ISSN: 2352-8478 (Print); 2352-8486 (Online)
Publisher: Elsevier
Country of publisher: Netherlands
LCC subjects: Technology: Electrical engineering. Electronics. Nuclear engineering: Materials of engineering and construction. Mechanics of materials
Website: https://www.sciencedirect.com/journal/journal-of-materiomics

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