skip to main content
OSTI.GOV title logo U.S. Department of Energy
Office of Scientific and Technical Information

Title: Synthetic conditions and their doping effect on {Beta}-K{sub 2}Bi{sub 8}Se{sub 13}.

Journal Article · · J. Alloys Compd.

In this work the synthetic conditions for K{sub 2}Bi{sub 8}Se{sub 13} and their effect on its thermoelectric properties were investigated. K{sub 2}Bi{sub 8}Se{sub 13} was prepared as a single phase using K{sub 2}Se and Bi{sub 2}Se{sub 3} as starting materials in a furnace or via a reaction using direct flame, followed by remelting or annealing. Seebeck coefficient measurements showed that the doping level in the material is sensitive to the synthetic conditions. Higher synthesis temperatures as well as the flame reaction technique followed by annealing gave more homogenous samples with higher Seebeck coefficient. IR optical spectroscopic measurements showed a wide range of doping level achieved among the different synthetic conditions. These findings suggest that synthetic conditions can act as a useful tool for the optimization of the thermoelectric properties of these materials.

Research Organization:
Argonne National Lab. (ANL), Argonne, IL (United States)
Sponsoring Organization:
USDOE Office of Science (SC); Cyprus Research Promotion Foundation
DOE Contract Number:
DE-AC02-06CH11357
OSTI ID:
1008306
Report Number(s):
ANL/MSD/JA-69090; TRN: US201106%%394
Journal Information:
J. Alloys Compd., Vol. 474, Issue Apr. 2009
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
ENGLISH