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Title: Origin of resistivity anomaly in p-type leads chalcogenide multiphase compounds

Journal Article · · AIP Advances
DOI:https://doi.org/10.1063/1.4913992· OSTI ID:22488562
 [1];  [2];  [3];  [4];  [5]
  1. Australian Institute for Innovative Materials (AIIM), Innovation Campus, University of Wollongong, NSW 2500 (Australia)
  2. Electron Microscopy Centre (EMC), Australian Institute for Innovative Materials (AIIM), Innovation Campus, University of Wollongong, NSW 2500 (Australia)
  3. Materials Science, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, CA 91125 (United States)
  4. Division of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, CA 91125 (United States)
  5. School of Materials Science and Engineering, Tongji University, 4800 Caoan Road, Shanghai 201804 (China)

The electrical resistivity curves for binary phase compounds of p-type lead chalcogenide (PbTe){sub (0.9−x)}(PbSe){sub 0.1}(PbS){sub x,} (x = 0.15, 0.2, 0.25), which contain PbS-rich secondary phases, show different behaviour on heating and cooling between 500-700 K. This is contrast to single phase compounds which exhibit similar behaviour on heating and cooling. We correlate these anomalies in the electrical resistivities of multiphase compounds to the variation in phase composition at high temperatures. The inhomogeneous distribution of dopants between the matrix and secondary phase is found to be crucial in the electronic transport properties of the multiphase compounds. These results can lead to further advances in designing composite Pb-chalcogenides with high thermoelectric performance.

OSTI ID:
22488562
Journal Information:
AIP Advances, Vol. 5, Issue 5; Other Information: (c) 2015 Author(s); Country of input: International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA); ISSN 2158-3226
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English