Te Nanoneedles Induced Entanglement and Thermoelectric Improvement of SnSe

Abstract

Chalcogenide-based materials have attracted widespread interest in high-performance thermoelectric research fields. A strategy for the application of two types of chalcogenide for improved thermoelectric performance is described herein. Tin selenide (SnSe) is used as a base material, and Te nanoneedles are crystallized in the SnSe, resulting in the generation of a composite structure of SnSe with Te nanoneedles. The thermoelectric properties with various reaction times are investigated to reveal the optimum conditions for enhanced thermoelectric performance. A reaction time of 4 h at 450 K generated a composite Te nanoneedles/SnSe sample with the maximum ZT value, 3.2 times larger than that of the pristine SnSe. This result is attributed to both the reduced thermal conductivity from the effective phonon scattering of heterointerfaces and the improved electrical conductivity value due to the introduction of Te nanoparticles. This strategy suggests an approach to generating high-performance practical thermoelectric materials.

Doping Effect on Cu2Se Thermoelectric Performance: A Review

“…From Equation (1), ZT has a strong relationship with temperature T, thus, according to the optimum operating temperature, the thermoelectric materials are divided into three groups, which are: low temperature ( ) TE materials: Bi 2 Te 3 series; mid temperature ( ) TE materials represented by PbTe series; high temperature (>900 ) TE materials which are represented by SiGe series. These series of materials have already achieved high figure of merit (ZT) values, and are applied in some certain field [ 12 , 13 , 14 , 15 , 16 ]. For instance, SiGe and PbTe series of TE materials, using radioisotope as heat source, have been used in space domains.…”

IR chalcogenide microlens arrays

“…It offers advantages such as a wide infrared transmission range, excellent visible light cutoff performance, high stability, good thermal processing properties, and flexible composition [10][11][12] . In terms of cost, processing, and performance, chalcogenide glass surpasses semiconductors and infrared polymer materials, making it highly valuable for numerous applications [13][14][15][16][17] . The low softening temperature of chalcogenide glass makes precision glass molding technology a feasible manufacturing method for infrared optical components 18 .…”

Fabrication of Chalcogenide Glass Based Hexagonal Gapless Microlens Arrays via Combining Femtosecond Laser Assist Chemical Etching and Precision Glass Molding Processes

“…The chalcogenide glasses (ChGs) are types of artificial materials made of mainly chalcogen elements (S, Se and Te) bonded with a covalent bond to some other heavy metals and metalloids [ 6 , 7 , 8 ]. Recently, ChG-based optical components and devices have attracted numerous researchers because of the low cost and unique properties, which include wide transmittance windows (making them suitable for both mid-infrared and long-infrared applications), high refractive indices ( n = 2.0–3.5) and strong nonlinear properties in the mid-infrared region [ 9 , 10 , 11 , 12 , 13 , 14 ]. On the contrary, germanium is rare and expensive, silicon has a nonlinear refractive index 100 or even 1000 times lower than that of a chalcogenide glass, and oxide glasses can only be used in the near- and mid-infrared wave band because of the strong infrared absorption of metal-oxygen bond vibrations [ 15 , 16 , 17 , 18 ].…”