Abstract
Superlattices with one-dimensional (1D) phonon confinement were studied to obtain a low thermal conductivity for thermoelectrics. Since they are composed of materials with a lattice mismatch, they often show dislocations. Like 1D nanowires, they also decrease heat transport in only one main propagation direction. It is therefore challenging to design superlattices with a thermoelectric figure of merit ZT higher than unity. Epitaxial self-assembly is a major technology to fabricate three-dimensional (3D) Ge quantum-dot (QD) arrays in Si. They have been used for quantum and solar-energy devices. Using the atomic-scale phononic crystal model, 3D Ge QD supercrystals in Si also present an extreme reduction of the thermal conductivity to a value that can be under 0.04 W/m/K. Owing to incoherent phonon scattering, the same conclusion holds for 3D supercrystals with moderate QD disordering. As a result, they might be considered for the design of highly efficient complementary metal–oxide–semiconductor (CMOS)-compatible thermoelectric devices with ZT possibly much higher than unity. Such a small thermal conductivity was only obtained for two-dimensional layered WSe2 crystals in an experimental study. However, electronic conduction in the Si/Ge compounds is significantly enhanced. The 0.04 W/m/K value can be computed for different Ge QD filling ratios of the Si/Ge supercrystal with size parameters in the range of current fabrication technologies.
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Acknowledgements
In the framework of this research work, Dr. Gillet received the Outstanding Scientific Paper Award of the 28th International Conference on Thermoelectrics (ICT 2009) from the International Thermoelectric Society (ITS).
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Gillet, JN., Volz, S. Self-Assembled Germanium Quantum-Dot Supercrystals in Silicon with Extremely Low Thermal Conductivities for Thermoelectrics. J. Electron. Mater. 39, 2154–2161 (2010). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11664-009-0977-y
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11664-009-0977-y