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Title: n-type thermoelectric material Mg 2 Sn 0.75 Ge 0.25 for high power generation

Journal Article · · Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America
 [1];  [1];  [1];  [1];  [1];  [2];  [2];  [2];  [2];  [3];  [1]
  1. Department of Physics and, Texas Center for Superconductivity, University of Houston, Houston, TX 77204-5002,
  2. Department of Physics, Boston College, Chestnut Hill, MA 02467, and
  3. Department of Physics and, Texas Center for Superconductivity, University of Houston, Houston, TX 77204-5002,, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Berkeley, CA 94720

Significance Thermoelectric materials have been extensively studied for applications in conversion of waste heat into electricity. The efficiency is related to the figure-of-merit, ZT = ( S 2 σ / κ ) T , where S , σ , and κ are the Seebeck coefficient, electrical conductivity, and thermal conductivity, respectively. Pursuing higher ZT for higher efficiency has been the focus by mainly reducing the thermal conductivity. In this paper, we point out, for a given ZT , higher power factor ( S 2 σ ) should be pursued for achieving more power because power is determined by ( T h − T c ) 2 ( S 2 σ )/ L , where T h , T c , and L are the hot and cold side temperatures, and leg length, respectively. We found a new material, Mg 2 Sn 0.75 Ge 0.25 , having both high ZT and high power factor.

Research Organization:
Energy Frontier Research Centers (EFRC) (United States). Solid-State Solar-Thermal Energy Conversion Center (S3TEC)
Sponsoring Organization:
USDOE Office of Science (SC), Basic Energy Sciences (BES)
Grant/Contract Number:
SC0001299/DE-FG02-09ER46577; DE-EE0005806; SC0001299; FG02-09ER46577
OSTI ID:
1235173
Alternate ID(s):
OSTI ID: 1385305
Journal Information:
Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America, Journal Name: Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America Vol. 112 Journal Issue: 11; ISSN 0027-8424
Publisher:
Proceedings of the National Academy of SciencesCopyright Statement
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English
Citation Metrics:
Cited by: 162 works
Citation information provided by
Web of Science

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