It has been suggested by theoretical calculation that indium antimonide (InSb) nanowires can possess improved thermoelectric properties compared to the corresponding bulk crystal. Here we fabricated a device using electron beam lithography to measure the thermopower and electrical conductivity of an individual InSb nanowire grown using a vapor-liquid-solid method. The comparison between the measurement results and transport simulations reveals that the nanowire was unintentionally degenerately doped with donors. Better control of the impurity doping concentration can improve the thermoelectric properties.

We have measured the electrical conductance and thermopower of a single InSb nanowire in the temperature range from 5 to 340 K. Below temperature (T) 220 K, the conductance (G) shows a power-law dependence on T and the current (I)-voltage (V) curve follows a power-law dependence on V at large bias voltages. These features are the characteristics of one-dimensional Luttinger liquid (LL) transport. The thermopower (S) also shows linear temperature dependence for T below 220 K, in agreement with the theoretical prediction based on the LL model. Above 220 K, the power law and linear behaviours respectively in the G-T and S-T curves persist but with different slopes from those at low temperatures. The slope changes can be explained by a transition from a single-mode LL state to a multi-mode LL state.

Long-length nanofibers are able to form porous networks with high surface-areato-volume ratios, and decrease diffusion lengths. While there are numerous techniques to create nanostructures, electrospinning is the only technique that allows fabrication of nanofibers at long-length scales. These uniquely shaped fibers are applied to several energy-related devices. This review is an in-depth summary of the uses of electrospun fibers in dye-sensitized solar cells (DSSCs), batteries, capacitors, fuel cells, and hydrogen storage devices. Developments in electrospinning technologies to create novel fiber morphologies are also discussed. Fig. 2 Aligned electrospun fibers using an air gap method. Reprinted with permission from [25].

Superhydrophobic membranes have the potential to protect devices from incidental exposure to water. This paper reports on the processing of Teflon AF fluoropolymers through electrospinning. Teflon AF is difficult to electrospin due to its low dielectric constant and the low dielectric constants of the liquids in which it is soluble. The two approaches that have been utilized to produce fibers are direct electrospinning in Novec engineering liquids and core-shell electrospinning. Both methods produced superhydrophobic membranes. Fibers with an average diameter of 290 nm and average water contact angle of 151° were obtained by core-shell electrospinning. One suggested application for electrospun superhydrophobic membranes is the lithium-air battery.