Effects of Ce, Y, and Sm doping on the thermoelectric properties of Bi2Te3 alloy

Nanopowders of elements doped Bi2Te3thermoelectric alloy R0.2Bi1.8Te3(R Ce,Y and Sm)were synthesized by the hydrothermal method.The nanopowders were hot-pressed into pellets and their thermoelectric properties were investigated.The results show that Ce,Y,and Sm doping has signifcant effects on the morphologies of the synthesized nanopowders and thermoelectric properties.Among the doping elements,Ce doping is a superiority dopant.Although the electrical conductivity and Seebeck coeffcient are not improved much by Ce doping,the thermal conductivity is supressed greatly.As a result the fgure of merit(ZT) of Ce0.2Bi1.8Te3is improved and reaches 1.29 at 398 K,which is higher than the Bi2Te3ingots made by the traditional zone-melting method     

Effect of high pressure sintering and annealing on microstructure and thermoelectric properties of nanocrystalline Bi2Te2.7Se0.3 doped with Gd

Bi2Te2.7Se0.3of high performance doped with Gd bulk materials was prepared by a high pressure(6.0 GPa) sintering(HPS) method at 593 K,633 K, 673 K and 693 K. The sample was then annealed for 36 h in a vacuum at 633 K. The phase composition, crystal structure and morphology of the sample were analyzed by X-ray diffraction and scanning electron microscopy. The electric conductivity, Seebeck coefficient, and thermal conductivity aspects of the sample were measured from 298 K to 473 K. The results show that high pressure sintering and the doping with Gd has a great effect on the crystal structure and the thermoelectric properties of the samples. The samples are consisted of nanoparticles before and after annealing, and these nanostructures have good stability at high temperature. HPS together with annealing can improve the TE properties of the sample by decreasing the thermal conductivity of the sample with nanostructures. The maximum ZT value of 0.74 was obtained at 423 K for the sample, which was sintered at 673 K and then annealed at 633 K for 36 h. Compared with the zone melting sample, it was increased by 85% at423 K. Hence the temperature of the maximum of figure of merit was increased. The results can be applied to the field of thermoelectric power generation materials.     

Silicon nanowires as efficient thermoelectric materials

Thermoelectric materials interconvert thermal gradients and electric fields for power generation or for refrigeration. Thermoelectrics currently find only niche applications because of their limited efficiency, which is measured by the dimensionless parameter ZT-a function of the Seebeck coefficient or thermoelectric power, and of the electrical and thermal conductivities. Maximizing ZT is challenging because optimizing one physical parameter often adversely affects another. Several groups have achieved significant improvements in ZT through multi-component nanostructured thermoelectrics, such as Bi(2)Te(3)/Sb(2)Te(3) thin-film superlattices, or embedded PbSeTe quantum dot superlattices. Here we report efficient thermoelectric performance from the single-component system of silicon nanowires for cross-sectional areas of 10 nm x 20 nm and 20 nm x 20 nm. By varying the nanowire size and impurity doping levels, ZT values representing an approximately 100-fold improvement over bulk Si are achieved over a broad temperature range, including ZT approximately 1 at 200 K. Independent measurements of the Seebeck coefficient, the electrical conductivity and the thermal conductivity, combined with theory, indicate that the improved efficiency originates from phonon effects. These results are expected to apply to other classes of semiconductor nanomaterials.     

Effects of Yb^3＋ codoping on visible and near infrared emissions of Er^3＋-Yb^3＋ codoped Al2O3 powders by the sol-gel method

The 0.1 mol% Er^3＋ and 0-2 mol% Yb^3＋ codoped Al2O3 powders were prepared by the sol-gel method, and the phase structure, including only two crystalline types of doped Al2O3 phase, γ-（Al,Er, Yb）2O3 and θ-（Al,Er, Yb）2O3, was detected at the sintering temperature of 1000℃. The visible and near infrared emissions properties depended strongly on the Yb^3＋ codoping, and the corresponding maximal peak intensities centered at about 523, 545, 660 and 1533 nm were obtained respectively for the 0.1 mol% Er^3＋ and 0.5 mol% Yb^3＋ codoped Al2O3 powders, which were composed of θ-（Al,Er,Yb）2O3 and a small amount of γ-（Al,Er, Yb）2O3 phases. The two-photon absorption process was responsible for the visible up-conversion emissions, and the one-photon absorption process was involved in the near infrared emissions of the Er^3＋-yb^3＋ codoped Al2O3 powders.     

Experimental studies on overall property of thermoelectric modules with sandwiched structures

Based on direct-current transient Harman method, an integrated characterization system of thermoelectric device’s performance is established. The overall properties of thermoelectric modules with sandwiched structures are experimentally investigated, including Seebeck coefficients, figures of merit (ZT), electrical and thermal conductivities. Experiment results reveal that ZT values of thermoelectric modules are smaller than those of commercial bismuth telluride (Bi₂Te₃) modules. In contrast, Seebeck coefficients are significantly larger than traditional thermoelectric device’s values. Meanwhile, both electrical and thermal conductivities are greater compared with literature data. Our results have proposed a feasible and economical way that can potentially increase Seebeck coefficients as to bulk Bi₂Te₃ materials without significant deterioration to the nature of Peltier effect.     

Thermoelectric properties of quaternary Mg2Sn0.4Si0.6−xGex alloys

Quaternary alloys Mg₂Sn_0.4Si_0.6−xGe_x (x=0, 0.02, 0.05, 0.08 0.1, and 0.2) were prepared using induction melting followed by hot-pressing. Relative densities of the sintered samples were over 97% of the theoretical values. Multiple phases were detected in the samples. It was found that the Seebeck coefficient was sensitive to the content of Mg₂Ge and a maximum value of about 350 μ V.K⁻¹ was obtained. The introduction of Ge increases the electrical conductivity and the thermal conductivity simultaneously. The mechanism of this phenomenon was discussed. A maximum dimensionless figure of merit, ZT, of about 0.28 was obtained for Mg₂Sn_0.4Si_0.55Ge_0.05 at 550 K.     

Surface tension and specific heat of liquid Ni<Subscript>70.2</Subscript>Si<Subscript>29.8</Subscript> alloy

The thermophysical properties of liquid alloys in me-tastable state are of importance for liquid-solid phase transformation under nonequilibrium conditions[1―10]. Sur-face tension and specific heat, two of the most important thermophysical properties, have significant influences on the process of crystal nucleation and growth. Furthermore, it is necessary to obtain these data so as to perform quan-titative research on rapid solidification[3―10]. The tradi-tional measurement methods, however,…     

Electrochemistry study on PEO-LiClO<Subscript>4</Subscript>-ZSM5 composite polymer electrolyte

Allsolid-statelithiumpolymerbatteriesmaybeoneofthebestchoicesforelectrochemicalpowersourceofthefuturecharacterizedbyitshighenergydensities,goodcyclability,reliabilityandsafety[1,2].PEO-LiXbasedpoly-merelectrolyteshadreceivedextensiveattention[4,5],foritspotentialcapabilitytobeusedascandidatematerialforthetraditionalliquidelectrolytes,sinceWrightetal.foundthatthecomplexofPEOandalkalinesaltshadtheabilityofionicconductivityin1973[3].ThegeneralconceptofthetransportofLi+inthepolymerelectrolytewa…     

Preparation and upconversion luminescence of YVO<Subscript>4</Subscript>:Er<Subscript>3+</Subscript>, Yb<Subscript>3+</Subscript>

YVO₄:Er³⁺, Yb³⁺ with varying Yb³⁺ concentrations were prepared by a precipitation method. The results of X-ray diffraction (XRD) show that all the samples have a tetragonal zircon structure; the calculated average crystallite sizes are in the range of 14–22 nm. The lattice constants and cell volume of the samples decrease slightly with the increase in Yb³⁺ concentration. The upconversion luminescence spectra of all the samples were studied under 980 nm laser excitation. The strong green emission is observed, which is attributed to the ²H_11/2 → ⁴I_15/2 and ⁴S_3/2→⁴I_15/2 transitions of Er³⁺, and the red emission peaks in 650–675 nm can be ignored. The emission intensity for the sample depends on the Yb³⁺ concentration. These results reveal that the upconversion processes of YVO₄:Er³⁺, Yb³⁺ are related to the structure and the doping Yb³⁺ concentration of the sample.     

Multi-color long-lasting phosphorescence of rare earth ions in CdSiO<Subscript>3</Subscript> matrix

A series of rare earth ions doped CdSiO3:RE^3 (RE=Y, La, Ce, Pr, Nd, Sm, Eu, Gd, Tb, Dy, Ho,Er, Tin, Yb, Lu) multi-color long-lasting phosphorescence phosphors are prepared by the conventional hightemperature solid-state method. The results of XRD measurement indicate that the products fired under 1050~C for 3h have a good crystallization without any detectable amount of impurity phase. Rare earth ions doped CdSiO3 phosphors possess excellent Inmiuescence properties. When rare earth ions such as Y^3 , La^3 , Gd^3 , Lu^3 , Ce^3 , Nd^3 , Ho^3 , Er^3 ,Tm^3 and Yb^3 are introduced into the CdSiO3 host, one broadband centered at about 420 nm resulting from traps can be observed. In the case of other earth ions such as Pr^3 ,Sm^3 , Eu^3 , Tb^3 and Dy^3 , their characteristic line emitting as well as the -420 nm broadband luminescence can be obtained. The mixture of their characteristic line emitting with the -420 nm broadband Inminescence results in various afterglow color.     

Fabrication and superconducting properties of nano-SiC doped MgB2 tapes

Nano-SiC doped MgB2 tapes were prepared by the in situ powder-in-tube method. Heat treatment was performed at 650℃ for 1 h. XRD data indicate that SiC particles had reacted with the MgB2 during sintering process. MgB2 core seemed to be denser after SiC doping, and the critical temperature was slightly depressed. The critical current density Jc of the SiC doped tapes was significantly enhanced in magnetic fields up to 14 T compared to the undoped ones. For the 5% SiC doped samples, Jc was in- creased by a factor of 32 at 4.2 K, 10 T. The enhancement of Jc-B properties in SiC doped MgB2 tapes is considered to be due to the enhancement of grain linkages and the introduction of effective flux pining centers. The substitution of B by C in MgB2 grains is thought to be the main reason for the improve- ment of the flux pinning ability in SiC doped MgB2 tapes.     

Influence of post-annealing on the properties of Ta-doped In<Subscript>2</Subscript>O<Subscript>3</Subscript> transparent conductive films

Ta-doped In₂O₃ transparent conductive oxide films were deposited on glass substrates using radio-frequency (RF) sputtering at 300°C. The influence of post-annealing on the structural, morphologic, electrical and optical properties of the films was investigated using X-ray diffraction, field emission scanning electron microscopy, Hall measurements and optical transmission spectroscopy. The obtained films were polycrystalline with a cubic structure and were preferentially oriented in the (222) crystallographic direction. The lowest resistivity, 5.1×10⁻⁴ Ω cm, was obtained in the film annealed at 500°C, which is half of that of the un-annealed film (9.9×10⁻⁴ Ω cm). The average optical transmittance of the films was over 90%. The optical bandgap was found to decrease with increasing annealing temperature.     

Effect of Pd doping on the acetone-sensing properties of NdFeO<Subscript>3</Subscript>

The acetone-sensing properties of the undoped and Pd doped perovskite-type oxides NdFeO₃ were investigated from room temperature to 400°C. The perovskite-type NdFeO₃ was synthesized by a sol-gel method, and the dopants Pd with the content from 1wt% to 5wt% were implanted into NdFeO₃ nanoparticles by thermal diffusion. X-ray diffraction (XRD) and scanning electron microscopy (SEM) techniques show that NdFeO₃ is an orthorhombic structure with the average particle size of about 40 nm. A giant acetone-sensing response of 675.7 is observed when the Pd content in NdFeO₃ powders is about 3wt%. The response and recovery time of the sensor to the 5×10⁻⁴ acetone gas are 16 and 1 s, respectively. At the same time, it performs a good selectivity to acetone gas and may be a new promising material candidate for the acetone-sensor development.     

钙钛矿La0.7CexBa0.3-xMnO3的磁热性能研究

【目的】通过固相反应法制备La_(0.7)Ce_xBa_(0.3-x)MnO_3(x=0,0.05,0.10,0.15,0.20)的钙钛矿锰氧化物,研究Ce元素的不同掺杂量对原体系磁热性能的影响。通过Ce元素的掺杂,来调节原体系过高的居里温度以及改善体系的磁热性能。【方法】通过X射线粉末衍射的方式确定其单相结构,并使用振动样品磁强计对钙钛矿样品进行磁性能的测试。【结果】La0.7CexBa0.3-xMnO3(x=0,0.05,0.10,0.15,0.20)的居里温度分别为342.1K,319.8K,270.0K,244.3K和199.7K。在0~2T的外磁场下,该体系的最大磁熵变分别为2.54J/(kg·K),2.32J/(kg·K),2.51J/(kg·K),2.03J/(kg·K)和1.87J/(kg·K),且最大磁熵变都在居里温度附近。【结论】随着Ce元素掺杂量的增加,化合物居里温度逐渐降低;而最大磁熵变则呈先减小后增大又减小的趋势。同时由Arrott曲线判断这5个样品的相变都是二级相变。当Ce元素的掺杂量为0.05~0.10时,该体系的居里温度在室温附近,且最大磁熵变仍保持较大的值。     

Enhanced thermoelectric properties of Co1-x-yNix+ySb3-xSnx materials

Co_1−x−y Ni_x+y Sb_3−x Sn _x polycrystals were fabricated by vacuum melting combined with hot-press sintering. The effect of alloying on the thermoelectric properties of unfilled skutterudite Co_1−x Ni _x Sb_3−x Sn _x was investigated. A leap of electrical conductivity from the Co_0.93Ni_0.07Sb_2.93Sn_0.07 sample to the Co_0.88Ni_0.12Sb_2.88Sn_0.12 sample occurs during the measurement of electrical conductivity, indicating the adjustment of band structure by proper alloying. The results show that alloying enhances the power factor of the materials. On the basis of alloying, the thermoelectric properties of Co_0.88Ni_0.12Sb_2.88Sn_0.12 are improved by Ni-doping. The thermal conductivities of Ni-doping samples have no reduction, but their power factors have obvious enhancement. The power factor of Co_0.81Ni_0.19Sb_2.88Sn_0.12 reaches 3.0 mW·m⁻¹·K⁻² by Ni doping. The dimensionless thermoelectric figure of merit reaches 0.55 at 773 K for the unfilled Co_0.81Ni_0.19 Sb_2.88Sn_0.12.     

Thermoelectric properties of tungsten ceramics prepared from nanopowder precursors

Tungsten trioxide ceramics were prepared from nm-sized powder precursors. Thermoelectric properties of samples were investigated. The results demonstrated that ceramics prepared in this manner have improved electrical conductivity and Seebeck coefficient values. The power factor of these samples also improved markedly, the largest power factor being 0.027 μW m-1K-2 at 773 K.     

Synergistically optimizing electrical and thermal transport properties of ntype PbSe

In this paper,we report that the thermoelectric performance of n-type Pb Se could be improved through synergistically optimizing electrical and thermal transport properties via Sb doping and Mg alloying.The carrier concentration was firstly optimized through Sb doping,resulting in a maximum power factor of~15.4μW cm~(-1)K~(-2)and maximum ZT of~0.9 at 873 K in Pb_(0.99)Sb_(0.01)Se.Then,Mg was selected for alloying in Pb sites to produce point defects,which can largely intensify the phonon scattering and lower thermal conductivity.After Mg alloying,the thermal conductivity at 300 K(873 K)was significantly suppressed from~4.6 Wm~(-1)K~(-1)(1.5 Wm~(-1)K~(-1))for Pb_(0.99)Sb_(0.01)Se to~2.9 Wm~(-1)K~(-1)(1.1 Wm~(-1)K~(-1))for Pb_(0.99)Sb_(0.01)Se-6%Mg Se.Through combining Sb doping and Mg alloying,a maximum ZT of~1.1 was achieved at 873 K for Pb_(0.99)Sb_(0.01)Se-6%Mg Se,and the average ZT(ZT_(ave))was increased by 28.6%from~0.42 for Pb_(0.99)Sb_(0.01)Se to~0.54 for Pb_(0.99)Sb_(0.01)Se-6%Mg Se.The results indicate that Pb Se is a robust candidate for medium-temperature thermoelectric applications.     

Improving thermoelectric properties of p-type Bi2Te3 -based alloys by spark plasma sintering

High-performance (Bi2Te3)x(Sb2Te3)1?x bulk materials were prepared by combining fusion technique with spark plasma sintering, and their thermoelectric properties were investigated. The electrical resistivity and Seebeck coefficient increase greatly and the thermal conductivity decreases signi ficantly with the increase of Bi2Te3 content, which leads to a great improvement in the thermoelectric figure of merit ZT. The maximum ZT value reaches 1.33 at 398 K for the composition of 20%Bi2Te3-80%Sb2Te3 with 3% (mass fraction) excess Te.     

Kinetic investigation of <Emphasis Type="Italic">in situ</Emphasis> growth of CdMoO<Subscript>4</Subscript> nano-octahedra

CdMoO₄ nano-octahedra were grown in situ at room temperature by reverse-microemulsion. Energy evolution from this growth process was monitored using microcalorimetry. The microcalorimetric heat flow (MCHF) curve showed a characteristic endothermic peak for the initial reaction, and double discontinuous exothermic peaks for the subsequent crystal growth. Combined with complementary characterization techniques, the evolution of morphology and size of the CdMoO₄ nano-octahedra were correlated with the MCHF peaks. Calculations based on the microcalorimetric results at 298.15 K provided rate constants of 7.56×10⁻⁵ s⁻¹ for the reaction and nucleation process and 1.59×10⁻⁴ s⁻¹ for the crystallization process.     

Giant magneto-optical faraday effect of nanometer Fe-In<Subscript>2</Subscript>O<Subscript>3</Subscript> granular films

The giant magneto-optical Faraday effect of nanometer ferromagnetic metal-semiconductor matrix Fe-ln2O3 granular films prepared by the radio frequency sputtering are studied. The result shows that the Faraday rotation angle θF value of the granular film samples with Fe volume fraction x = 35% is of the order of 10^5（°）/cm at room temperature. Temperature dependence of the Faraday rotation angle θF of Fe0.35（In2O3）0.65 granular films shows that θF value below 10 K increases rapidly with the decrease of the temperature, and when T= 4.2 K, θF value is 106（°）/cm. Through the study of the dependence of low field susceptibility on temperature and the hysteresis loops at different temperatures, it has been found that when the temperature decreases to a critical point Tp = 10 K, the transformation of state from ferro-agnetic to spin-glass-like occurs in Fe0.35（In2O3）0.65 granular films. The remarkable increase of the Faraday rotation angle θF value of Fe0.35（In2O3）0.65 granular films below 10 K seems to arise from the sp-d exchange interaction of the granular film samples in the spin-glass-like state.