ADVANCED FUNCTIONAL MATERIALS
·
2025
·
IF 19
Lixiang Xu,Lulu Huang,Weite Meng,Chenxin Wang,Shaoqing Lu,Shanhong Wan,Mengyao Li,Xuan Yang,Qingyue Wang,Wen-Jun Wang,Andreu Cabot,Yu Zhang,Yu Liu,Khak Ho Lim
Lead sulfide (PbS) is an earth-abundant thermoelectric (TE) material. Cu, despite being an effective dopant, becomes thermally mobile at elevated temperatures, causing interfacial reactions and compositional inhomogeneity that undermine structural and electronic stability. In this study, we report a composite route that integrates colloidal PbS nanocrystals (NCs) with aqueous-synthesized Cu-doped PbS NCs to form PbS-based nanocomposites. The approach integrates high Cu-doping efficiency in aqueous synthesized NCs and structural robustness of colloidal NCs, thereby suppressing Cu migration at elevated temperature and improving thermal stability and mechanical robustness. The microstructure yields dense grain boundaries and heterointerfaces, where traces amount of Cu 2 S nanodomains are present, thereby modulating carrier concentration while enhancing phonon scattering. The nanocomposites exhibit 37% increase in mechanical strength, superior thermal stability over consecutive heating-cooling cycles and prolonged isothermal test, and reduced lattice thermal conductivity of 0.63 W m −1 K −1 , resulting in a peak zT of ∼1.1 at 790 K. Furthermore, a single-leg TE device fabricated from the optimized composite achieves a conversion efficiency of 6.3% at ΔT = 449 K, exceeding that of most PbS-based counterparts operating at similar temperatures. This study demonstrates a microstructure and defect-engineering that balances efficiency with long-term service reliability for PbS-based TEs.
研究领域:
材料科学
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热电学
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纳米材料
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固体物理
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能量转换
✓ 已验证
产品关联
DOI
高影响因子
JOURNAL OF ELECTRONIC MATERIALS
·
2024
·
IF 2.2
Li Yunkai,Wang Lige,Yang Ruizhi,Liang Li,Luan Qingdong,Liu Jing
Copper selenide (Cu 2 Se) has attracted extensive research interest in the field of thermoelectricity due to its large abundance of constituent elements, environmental friendliness, and excellent thermoelectric properties. In this study, a facile and low-cost hydrothermal synthesis method combined with vacuum sintering was used for Cu 2 Se-based sample preparation, and the possibility of improving the thermoelectric properties of Cu 2 Se by doping with rare earth elements (Tm, Er, Lu) was explored using experimental tests and density functional theory calculations. The electronic structure calculations show that the electrical conductivity is increased due to the increased electron density after rare earth element doping. At the same time, the sharp increase in the density of states at the Fermi level after rare earth element doping enhances the Seebeck coefficient of the Cu 2 Se matrix. The experimental results show that the thermoelectric properties of all the samples doped with rare earth elements (Tm, Er, Lu) were improved compared to the Cu 2 Se matrix. The doping of rare earth elements led to an increase in point defects and the formation of pores in the samples, which play an important role in reducing the thermal conductivity. Among them, the Tm-doped Cu 1.995 Tm 0.005 Se sample reached a maximum ZT value of 0.80 at 773 K, which is a nearly 43% increase compared to the Cu 2 Se matrix (ZT max = 0.56).
研究领域:
材料科学
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热电学
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稀土元素
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合成方法
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计算材料科学
✓ 已验证
产品关联
DOI
高影响因子
ACS Applied Materials & Interfaces
·
2025
·
IF 8.2
Guibin Zhang,Xin Wang,Yaqian Du,Jun Wang,Xuebing Yang,Ta La,Jianbo Li
SrTiO3 exhibits promising potential in both thermoelectric and optical properties. However, research on these two properties has consistently been carried out in two relatively independent fields. In this work, the regulatory mechanisms of thermoelectric and optical properties were proposed based on photon-excited electron–phonon interactions. Er doping can enhance the photon absorption of SrTiO3 by introducing impurity energy levels, thereby promoting photoexcited electron generation. The introduction of oxygen vacancies (Vo) enhances the interaction between excited electrons and phonons through defect levels, facilitating the conversion of photon energy into thermal energy and subsequently into electrical energy. Additionally, Er–Nb codoping with Vo synergistically optimizes thermoelectric properties, thereby laying a foundation for the regulation of photothermoelectric properties. As a result, significant photothermoelectric conversion was obtained in the Sr0.85Er0.15Ti0.9Nb0.1O3 (Vo) sample. A maximum ZT value of 0.32 at 1073 K was achieved in this sample, representing a 60% improvement over previously reported Nb-doped SrTiO3 samples. The electrical output power of the Sr0.85Er0.15Ti0.9Nb0.1O3 (Vo) sample reaches 3.85 μW under portable 980 nm laser excitation at 260 mW incident power. These findings provide valuable insights into the conversion of light energy to electrical energy in highly absorptive SrTiO3-based thermoelectric materials.
研究领域:
材料科学
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热电学
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光电子学
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能量转换
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固体物理
✓ 已验证
产品关联
DOI
PubMed
高影响因子
Journal of Materials Chemistry C
·
2025
·
IF 5.1
Rong Li,Chong-yu Wang,Qiu-Yu Luo,Ze Li,Xing Yang,Wang-Qi Bao,Yi-Xin Zhang,Jing Feng,Zhenhua Ge
Lead-free SnSe2 materials have intrinsic low thermal conductivities and are promising thermoelectrics. However, their relatively low electrical conductivity limits the improvement of thermoelectric performance. This study successfully introduced halogen elements (X = F, Cl, Br, and I) into SnSe2 to increase carrier concentration for better thermoelectric performance. The defect formation energy calculation results showed the lowest value for SeCl, indicating that incorporating Cl into the SnSe2 matrix could achieve higher thermoelectric performance. Experimental results further verified this conclusion. At 323 K, the electrical conductivity for the SnSe1.94Cl0.06 sample was 86 S cm–1, 61 times higher than that of pristine SnSe2. Combined with the DFT calculation results, the decreased bandgap of the Cl-doped sample benefitted the transport of carriers. Due to the increased electrical conductivity, a peak power factor value of 457μW m–1 K–2 was achieved at 473 K. Meanwhile, the formed point defects decreased the lattice thermal conductivity to 0.38 W m–1K–1 at 773 K, 14% lower than that of the pristine SnSe2 sample. Consequently, the SnSe1.97Cl0.03 sample obtained a peak ZT value of 0.63 at 773 K, five times higher than that of pristine SnSe2. This strategy of thermoelectric performance optimization through the introduction of halogen elements can be applied to other thermoelectric material systems.
研究领域:
材料科学
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热电材料
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固体物理
·
缺陷工程
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能量转换材料
✓ 已验证
DOI
高影响因子
Energy & Environmental Science
·
2025
·
IF 30.8
Lin Zhang,Hongjing Shang,Hao Dong,Hongwei Gu,Fazhu Ding
While flexible thermoelectric materials hold promise for wearable electronics, the low performance of films and the inefficiency of devices fundamentally restrict their practical applications. Herein, we have presented a microstructure engineering strategy to fabricate high-performance Ag2Se films. Via regulation of the grain-growth process, Ag2Se grains with large sizes are obtained, in which the carrier mobility is significantly enhanced to up to ∼1300 cm2 V−1 s−1 at room temperature due to the reduced electron scattering, and low-angle grain boundaries are developed, with the room-temperature lattice thermal conductivity decreasing to 0.26 W m−1 K−1 because of the increased mid-frequency phonon scattering, thus partially decoupling the electrical and thermal properties. Benefiting from this, a high ZT of 1.15 is achieved at 300 K. Using these films, a flexible and wearable thermoelectric generator incorporating 100 pairs of thermoelectric legs was successfully developed. In the generator, a sputtering Ag buffer layer was introduced to reduce the contact resistance and interfacial reaction. As a result, this thermoelectric generator exhibits an ultra-high normalized power density of ∼9.09 μW m−1 K−2, which is also the current record-breaking value among thermoelectric film devices. The superior performance allows the thermoelectric generator to power various portable electronics, including LED lights, wristwatches, and, particularly, smartphones. This work establishes a generalizable framework for developing high-performance and manufacturable thermoelectric materials and devices, narrowing the gap between laboratory breakthroughs and industrial adoption in wearable energy harvesting.
研究领域:
材料科学
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纳米技术
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能量收集
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热电材料
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柔性电子学
✓ 已验证
产品关联
DOI
高影响因子
Materials Today Communications
·
2025
·
IF 4.5
Junyan Lin,Lele Chen,Chubin Li,Zuyun Chen,Jiapei Yang,Yuqi Zeng,Yuanxin Jiang,Yu Zhang,Weiwei Xing,Jiye Zhang,Jian-Guo Chen,Kai Guo
Grain boundaries or phase boundaries, which play a pivotal role in decoupling electrical and thermal transport, are frequently engineered to regulate thermoelectric performance. Although extensive research has been conducted on their composition, density, coherency, and width, relatively limited attention has been paid to the strategic utilization of local electric fields at these interfaces for manipulating charge carrier and phonon transport. By incorporating piezoelectric material Pb(Zr 0.50 Ti 0.44 Fe 0.06 )O 3 into thermoelectric material Ge 0.94 Sb 0.06 Te, a local electric field is generated that effectively impedes the transport of low-energy holes. This innovative approach results in a noteworthy enhancement of the Seebeck coefficients in the composites without compromising electrical conductivity. Consequently, an improvement in zT values can be achieved for the sample Ge 0.94 Sb 0.06 Te+ 0.3 wt% Pb(Zr 0.50 Ti 0.44 Fe 0.06 )O 3 , showing a 15 % increase compared to the sample without Pb(Zr 0.50 Ti 0.44 Fe 0.06 )O 3 . Simulation results further corroborate the practical significance of this approach, predicting an impressive conversion efficiency of 10.7 % for a single-leg thermoelectric device, thereby underscoring its considerable potential for power generation applications.
研究领域:
材料科学
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热电材料
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固体物理
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纳米技术
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能量转换
✓ 已验证
产品关联
DOI
高影响因子
JOURNAL OF ALLOYS AND COMPOUNDS
·
2025
·
IF 6.3
Lujie Dong,Ping Zhang,Wei Hu,Xingyou Tian,Xian Zhang,Jian Zhang,Hui Zhang
Current solar energy conversion materials based on the photo-thermo-electric effect faced challenges such as intermittent energy conversion, as well as a certain waste of resources and equipment due to unable to work at night. In order to address these issues, we have developed a film for power generation based on the photothermal and thermoelectric effects. In the composite film, the superconducting carbon black connected Bi 2 Te 2.7 Se 0.3 established an effective conductive pathway in the polyimide (PI), resulting in a Seebeck coefficient (S) of −95 μVK −1 , and a thermoelectric figure of merit (ZT) of 0.18 × 10 −3 for the composite film. Based on the photothermal and thermoelectric effects, the voltage output of the composite film during the day can be simulated and regulated by adjusting the power parameters of the laser emitter and the position of the laser. The composite film generated an output voltage of 5 mV owing to the exceptional thermoelectric effect. At night, Peltier effect and Joule heating effect permitted the attainment of a maximum temperature of 93 °C and a maximum temperature differential of 10 °C when the load voltage was 2 V. A homemade four-legged thermoelectric system achieved an output voltage of 227 mV and an output power of 2.659 mW at a laser power of 1.5 W/cm 2 . Concurrently, the composite film exhibited optimal mechanical characteristics, and bending cycle stability. As a result, this study provided a novel idea for the multifunctional integration, which not only provided efficient output during the day but also temperature control at night.
研究领域:
材料科学
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能量转换
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热电材料
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光热转换
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柔性电子学
✓ 已验证
产品关联
DOI
高影响因子
ACTA MATERIALIA
·
2024
·
IF 8.3
Fanshi Wu,Yifan Shi,Wanjia Zhang,Wei Zhao,Hao Yang,Wenxin Lai,Yue Lou,Zhenhua Yan,Zhan Shi,Zhenhua Ge,Xiyang Wang,Liangwei Fu,Biao Xu
Sub-nanomaterials possess unprecedented size-dependent properties compared to conventional nanomaterials, which endow them with great potential in catalysis, biomedicine, sensors, and so on. However, their applications in thermoelectrics are unknown due to poor thermal stability and low yields. Herein, we construct a series of thermoelectric composites by incorporating highly thermally stable and commercial fullerene sub-nanoclusters (C 60 or C 70 ). We find that sub-nanoclusters as the second phase can conduce to optimized carrier concentration through charge transfer at interfaces while the carrier mobility is significantly enhanced due to atom orbital hybridization and size-dependent electrical scattering mechanism. Furthermore, the ultra-low thermal conductivity of C 60 due to its distorted chemical bonding and sub-nanometer pore, and the interfacial thermal resistance greatly suppress the phonon transport. Consequently, the 0.15 mol.% C 60 /Bi 0.4 Sb 1.6 Te 3 realizes an ultra-high ZT of ∼1.6 at 373 K, an excellent thermoelectric conversion efficiency of ∼7.4 %, and a huge cooling performance of ∼73 K. This work demonstrates the application of sub-nanomaterials in thermoelectrics and may shed light on other fields such as electronic devices, thermal management, and fullerene chemistry.
研究领域:
材料科学
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热电学
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纳米技术
·
化学
✓ 已验证
产品关联
DOI
高影响因子
Nature Communications
·
2024
·Vol. 15
·期 1
·1-13
·
IF 14.7
Gong Yaru,Dou Wei,Lu Bochen,Zhang Xuemei,Zhu He,Ying Pan,Zhang Qingtang,Liu Yuqi,Li Yanan,Huang Xinqi,Iqbal Muhammad Faisal,Zhang Shihua,Li Di,Zhang Yongsheng,Wu Haijun,Tang Guodong
N -type polycrystalline SnSe is considered as a highly promising candidates for thermoelectric applications due to facile processing, machinability, and scalability. However, existing efforts do not enable a peak ZT value exceeding 2.0 in n -type polycrystalline SnSe. Here, we realized a significant ZT enhancement by leveraging the synergistic effects of divacancy defect and introducing resonance level into the conduction band. The resonance level and increased density of states resulting from tungsten boost the Seebeck coefficient. The combination of the enhanced electrical conductivity (achieved by increasing carrier concentration through WCl 6 doping and Se vacancies) and large Seebeck coefficient lead to a high power factor. Microstructural analyses reveal that the co-existence of divacancy defects (Se vacancies and Sn vacancies) and endotaxial W- and Cl-rich nanoprecipitates scatter phonons effectively, resulting in ultralow lattice conductivity. Ultimately, a record-high peak ZT of 2.2 at 773 K is achieved in n -type SnSe 0.92 + 0.03WCl 6 .
研究领域:
材料科学
·
热电学
·
固体物理学
✓ 已验证
DOI
高影响因子
Journal of Materiomics
·
2022
·
IF 8.589
Sitong Wei,Boyi Wang,Zipei Zhang,Wenhao Li,Lu Yu,Shikai Wei,Zhen Ji,Weiyu Song,Shuqi Zheng
The previous works commonly adjust the carrier concentration through acceptor doping, but at the same time, the decrease of the Seebeck coefficient limits the further improvement of electrical properties in Cu 3 SbSe 4 -based materials. In this work, a microwave-assisted hydrothermal synthesis method was used to synthesize Cu 3 SbSe 4 /TiO 2 hollow microspheres. Part of TiO 2 participates in the reaction, replaces the Sb site of Cu 3 SbSe 4 to form holes, and the rest is dispersed in the matrix in the form of the second phase. The first-principles calculations reveal that the doping of Ti significantly changes the band structure and phonon spectrum, thereby regulating carrier concentration while increasing phonon scattering. In addition, experimental results show that the energy filtering effect generated by the extra-mixed TiO 2 nano particles, which suppresses the decrease of Seebeck coefficient by acceptor doping. Consequently, the highest average power factor 897.5 μW m −1 K −2 and the zT peak value of 0.70 can be obtained in Cu 3 SbSe 4 /6%TiO 2 sample at 298–623 K. This work provides a new sight to improve the thermoelectric properties in Cu 3 SbSe 4 through carrier concentration regulation and nano-phase composition.
研究领域:
材料科学
·
热电学
·
纳米材料
·
固体物理
✓ 已验证
产品关联
DOI
高影响因子
ADVANCED FUNCTIONAL MATERIALS
·
2022
·Vol. 32
·期 24
·2200307
·
IF 19.924
Xiaodong Wang,Jinxuan Cheng,Li Yin,Zongwei Zhang,Xinyu Wang,Jiehe Sui,Xingjun Liu,Jun Mao,Feng Cao,Qian Zhang
Bismuth telluride alloys favor the applications of low-grade waste heat recovery if their figure-of-merits are improved within the larger temperature range from 300 to 523 K. Herein, this work reports a synergistic optimization for Bi 0.5 Sb 1.5 Te 3 (BST) by incorporating the copper(II) phthalocyanine (CuPc), which is preferentially distributed at the grain boundary of BST after the spark plasma sintering process and suppresses the grain growth of BST. The lattice thermal conductivity of composites is then extensively reduced by the multiscale scattering induced by the CuPc. In addition, the Cu atoms diffuse into the lattice of BST and increase the whole concentration, thus suppressing the bipolar effect. As a result, the average zT value is effectively enhanced from 0.7 to 1.1 in the temperature range between 300 and 523 K. A high conversion efficiency of 6.8% is achieved in a single BST/CuPc 5 leg, which is 41.7% higher than that of BST at temperature different Δ T = 223 K. This result proves that the composition optimization of the BST/CuPc is a promising strategy to improve the application of BST-based TE modules.
研究领域:
材料科学
·
热电学
·
能量转换
·
纳米复合材料
·
固体物理
✓ 已验证
DOI
高影响因子
Small
·
2025
·Vol. 21
·期 21
·2502827
·
IF 12.1
Pei Cai,Xiaotong Yu,Zhijun Wang,Meng Cao,Xinxin Yang,Yusong Du,Jing-Tai Zhao,Juanjuan Xing,Jiye Zhang,Kai Guo
The IV-VI compound SnSe is an environmentally friendly and high-performance thermoelectric material with intrinsically low lattice thermal conductivity. Recent research efforts have focused on enhancing carrier concentration and effective mass to improve power factors, thereby achieving superior thermoelectric performance as reflected in the figure of merit ZT . In context of the anisotropic crystal structure of SnSe, this study utilized a hydrothermal method to synthesize Rb-doped SnSe nanosheets. Rb acts as an acceptor dopant, increasing the hole concentration to 2.0 × 10 19 cm −3 and promoting second valence band participation in transport at room temperature, significantly elevating the ZT value of polycrystalline SnSe to 1.41 at 773 K. Furthermore, texture engineering was implemented through a secondary sintering process. This approach facilitates the organized stacking of grains with highly preferred orientations, resulting in a notable improvement of hole mobility perpendicular to the pressure direction to further increase the power factor. By synergistically combining carrier concentration optimization with texture engineering strategies, an exceptional ZT value of 1.74 at 773 K was achieved in polycrystalline SnSe. This work presents a cost-effective, straightforward, and low-temperature synthesis route for the large-scale production of high-performance SnSe thermoelectric materials, offering significant potential for practical applications in energy harvesting and conversion.
研究领域:
材料科学
·
热电学
·
纳米材料
·
能量转换
✓ 已验证
产品关联
DOI
PubMed
高影响因子
危险品化学品经营许可证（带存储）