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Universal Curve of Optimum Thermoelectric Figures of Merit for Bulk and Low-Dimensional Semiconductors

Nguyen T. Hung*, Ahmad R. T. Nugraha, and Riichiro Saito

  • Department of Physics, Tohoku University, Sendai 980-8578, Japan

  • *nguyen@flex.phys.tohoku.ac.jp
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Phys. Rev. Applied 9, 024019 – Published 20 February, 2018

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevApplied.9.024019

Abstract

This paper is a contribution to the Physical Review Applied collection in memory of Mildred S. Dresselhaus.

Analytical formulas for thermoelectric figures of merit and power factors are derived based on the one-band model. We find that there is a direct relationship between the optimum figures of merit and the optimum power factors of semiconductors despite of the fact that the two quantities are generally given by different values of chemical potentials. By introducing a dimensionless parameter consisting of the optimum power factor and lattice thermal conductivity (without electronic thermal conductivity), it is possible to unify optimum figures of merit of both bulk and low-dimensional semiconductors into a single universal curve that covers many materials with different dimensionalities.

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This article appears in the following collection:

Millie Dresselhaus: Her living scientific legacy

Physical Review Applied is pleased to present the “Collection in Memory of Mildred S. Dresselhaus,” documenting how the science she impacted lives on. Papers belonging to this collection will be published throughout 2018. The contributed articles, and an editorial by Guest Editors David Tománek and Morinobu Endo, are linked below.

Article Text

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Information

Phys. Rev. Applied 9, 024019– Published 20 February, 2018
  • Received 26 September 2017
  • Revised 19 December 2017
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