Semiconductor Thermoelectric Converters of Alternating Current Signals

Abstract

Measuring converters have been developed based on Bi 2 Te 3 solid solutions optimized for temperature and temporal stability of the basic thermoelectric parameters (thermal conductivity, electrical conductivity, and the Seebeck coefficient). Semiconductor material was grown by the vertical zone melting method. High efficiency of the optimized semiconductor materials made it possible to reduce the operating temperature considerably, as well as facilitating selection of structural materials and the converter fabrication technique. The influence of the Peltier and Thomson effects on the accuracy of direct current conversion has been reduced, and the operating frequency range of measurements has been expanded. Thermoelectric converters with sensitivity up to 30 V W À1 have been created without evacuation of the working space, which is filled with an inert gas mixture. The engineered converters offer the advantages of high sensitivity and a wide operating frequency range (up to 30 MHz).