First-principles calculation of intrinsic defect chemistry and self-doping in PbTe
Abstract
Semiconductor dopability is inherently limited by intrinsic defect chemistry. In many thermoelectric materials, narrow band gaps due to strong spin-orbit interactions make accurate atomic level predictions of intrinsic defect chemistry and self-doping computationally challenging. For this study, we use different levels of theory to model point defects in PbTe, and compare and contrast the results against each other and a large body of experimental data. We find that to accurately reproduce the intrinsic defect chemistry and known self-doping behavior of PbTe, it is essential to (a) go beyond the semi-local GGA approximation to density functional theory, (b) include spin-orbit coupling, and (c) utilize many-body GW theory to describe the positions of individual band edges. The hybrid HSE functional with spin-orbit coupling included, in combination with the band edge shifts from G0W0 is the only approach that accurately captures both the intrinsic conductivity type of PbTe as function of synthesis conditions as well as the measured charge carrier concentrations, without the need for experimental inputs. Our results reaffirm the critical role of the position of individual band edges in defect calculations, and demonstrate that dopability can be accurately predicted in such challenging narrow band gap materials.
- Authors:
-
- Colorado School of Mines, Golden, CO (United States); National Renewable Energy Lab. (NREL), Golden, CO (United States)
- Publication Date:
- Research Org.:
- National Renewable Energy Lab. (NREL), Golden, CO (United States)
- Sponsoring Org.:
- USDOE Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE); National Science Foundation (NSF)
- OSTI Identifier:
- 1432441
- Report Number(s):
- NREL/JA-5K00-71271
Journal ID: ISSN 2057-3960
- Grant/Contract Number:
- AC36-08GO28308; DMR-1309980; 1334713
- Resource Type:
- Accepted Manuscript
- Journal Name:
- npj Computational Materials
- Additional Journal Information:
- Journal Volume: 3; Journal Issue: 1; Journal ID: ISSN 2057-3960
- Publisher:
- Nature Publishing Group
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
- Subject:
- 71 CLASSICAL AND QUANTUM MECHANICS, GENERAL PHYSICS; 37 INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CHEMISTRY; 36 MATERIALS SCIENCE; electronic structure; semiconductors; thermoelectrics
Citation Formats
Goyal, Anuj, Gorai, Prashun, Toberer, Eric S., and Stevanovic, Vladan. First-principles calculation of intrinsic defect chemistry and self-doping in PbTe. United States: N. p., 2017.
Web. doi:10.1038/s41524-017-0047-6.
Goyal, Anuj, Gorai, Prashun, Toberer, Eric S., & Stevanovic, Vladan. First-principles calculation of intrinsic defect chemistry and self-doping in PbTe. United States. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41524-017-0047-6
Goyal, Anuj, Gorai, Prashun, Toberer, Eric S., and Stevanovic, Vladan. Fri .
"First-principles calculation of intrinsic defect chemistry and self-doping in PbTe". United States. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41524-017-0047-6. https://www.osti.gov/servlets/purl/1432441.
@article{osti_1432441,
title = {First-principles calculation of intrinsic defect chemistry and self-doping in PbTe},
author = {Goyal, Anuj and Gorai, Prashun and Toberer, Eric S. and Stevanovic, Vladan},
abstractNote = {Semiconductor dopability is inherently limited by intrinsic defect chemistry. In many thermoelectric materials, narrow band gaps due to strong spin-orbit interactions make accurate atomic level predictions of intrinsic defect chemistry and self-doping computationally challenging. For this study, we use different levels of theory to model point defects in PbTe, and compare and contrast the results against each other and a large body of experimental data. We find that to accurately reproduce the intrinsic defect chemistry and known self-doping behavior of PbTe, it is essential to (a) go beyond the semi-local GGA approximation to density functional theory, (b) include spin-orbit coupling, and (c) utilize many-body GW theory to describe the positions of individual band edges. The hybrid HSE functional with spin-orbit coupling included, in combination with the band edge shifts from G0W0 is the only approach that accurately captures both the intrinsic conductivity type of PbTe as function of synthesis conditions as well as the measured charge carrier concentrations, without the need for experimental inputs. Our results reaffirm the critical role of the position of individual band edges in defect calculations, and demonstrate that dopability can be accurately predicted in such challenging narrow band gap materials.},
doi = {10.1038/s41524-017-0047-6},
journal = {npj Computational Materials},
number = 1,
volume = 3,
place = {United States},
year = {2017},
month = {11}
}
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