Abstract
The possibility of increasing the efficiency of a thermocouple in the temperature range of 30–320°C is studied using an approach associated with the development of segmented thermoelectric unicouples. n- and p-type thermoelectric unicouples are constructed from low-temperature thermoelectric materials based on bismuth telluride and the addition of an intermediate-temperature material based on PbTe and GeTe, respectively. The thermoelectric unicouples are fabricated by spark plasma sintering (SPS). This method provides a contact resistance of ≤10 μΩ cm. The properties of segmented and conventional unicouples are compared. The efficiency of segmented unicouples in comparison with conventional ones increases by almost 70% and attains 5.3% in the operating range of 30–320°C.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Zhongliang Ouyang and Dawen Li, Sci. Rep. 6, 24123 (2016).
Hee Seok Kim, Keiko Kikuchi, Takashi Itoh, Tsutomu Lida, and Minoru Taya, Mater. Sci. Eng. B 185, 45 (2014).
M. G. Lavrent’ev, M. V. Mezhennyi, V. B. Osvenskii, and A. I. Prostomolotov, Izv. Vyssh. Uchebn. Zaved., Mater. Elektron. Tekh., No. 3, 35 (2012).
M. G. Lavrentev, V. B. Osvenskii, Yu. N. Parkhomenko, G. I. Pivovarov, A. I. Sorokin, L. P. Bulat, H.-S. Kim, I. T. Witting, G. J. Snyder, V. T. Bublik, and N. Yu. Tabachkova, APL Mater. 4, 9 (2016).
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Additional information
Original Russian Text © A.I. Sorokin, 2017, published in Fizika i Tekhnika Poluprovodnikov, 2017, Vol. 51, No. 7, pp. 884–886.
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Sorokin, A.I. Segmented thermoelectric unicouple for an operating temperature range of 30–320°C. Semiconductors 51, 847–849 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1134/S1063782617070338
Received:
Accepted:
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1134/S1063782617070338