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Title: In situ neutron scattering study of nanoscale phase evolution in PbTe-PbS thermoelectric material

Journal Article · · Applied Physics Letters
DOI:https://doi.org/10.1063/1.4961677· OSTI ID:1327606
 [1]; ORCiD logo [2];  [3];  [1];  [2];  [3]; ORCiD logo [3]
  1. Temple Univ., Philadelphia, PA (United States). Dept. of Mechanical Engineering
  2. Michigan State Univ., East Lansing, MI (United States). Dept. of Chemical Engineering and Materials Science
  3. Oak Ridge National Lab. (ORNL), Oak Ridge, TN (United States). Chemical and Engineering Materials Division
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Introducing nanostructural second phases has been proved to be an effective approach to reduce the lattice thermal conductivity and thus enhance the figure of merit for many thermoelectric materials. Furthermore studies of the formation and evolution of these second phases are central to understanding temperature dependent material behavior, improving thermal stabilities, as well as designing new materials. We examined powder samples of PbTe-PbS thermoelectric material using in situ neutron diffraction and small angle neutron scattering (SANS) techniques from room temperature to elevated temperature up to 663 K, to explore quantitative information on the structure, weight fraction, and size of the second phase. Neutron diffraction data showed the as-milled powder was primarily solid solution before heat treatment. During heating, PbS second phase precipitated out of the PbTe matrix around 480 K, while re-dissolution started around 570 K. The second phase remained separated from the matrix upon cooling. Furthermore, SANS data indicated there are two populations of nanostructures. The size of the smaller nanostructure increased from initially 5 nm to approximately 25 nm after annealing at 650 K, while the size of the larger nanostructure remained unchanged. Our study demonstrated that in situ neutron techniques are effective means to obtain quantitative information to study temperature dependent nanostructural behavior of thermoelectrics and likely other high-temperature materials.

Research Organization:
Energy Frontier Research Centers (EFRC) (United States). Revolutionary Materials for Solid State Energy Conversion (RMSSEC); Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL), Oak Ridge, TN (United States). High Flux Isotope Reactor (HFIR); Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL), Oak Ridge, TN (United States). Spallation Neutron Source (SNS)
Sponsoring Organization:
USDOE Office of Science (SC), Basic Energy Sciences (BES)
Grant/Contract Number:
AC05-00OR22725; SC0001054
OSTI ID:
1327606
Alternate ID(s):
OSTI ID: 1306681
Journal Information:
Applied Physics Letters, Vol. 109, Issue 8; ISSN 0003-6951
Publisher:
American Institute of Physics (AIP)Copyright Statement
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English
Citation Metrics:
Cited by: 8 works
Citation information provided by
Web of Science

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Cited By (3)

Thermoelectric stability of Eu- and Na-substituted PbTe journal January 2018
RHEGAL: Resistive heating gas enclosure loadframe for in situ neutron scattering journal September 2018
A suite-level review of the neutron powder diffraction instruments at Oak Ridge National Laboratory journal September 2018

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