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Springer Handbook of Electronic and Photonic Materials pp 1Cite as

Thermoelectric Materials

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Abstract

Thermoelectricity is one of the oldest phenomena to be observed in semiconductors, with discovery of the various thermoelectric effects dating back to the early part of the 19th century. These effects manifest themselves as the appearance of a voltage in a circuit comprised of two different conductors due to a temperature difference (Seebeck effect ), or as the absorption and evolution of heat at the junction of two different materials under electrical current excitation (Peltier effect ). These effects can be utilized in devices to generate electrical power from waste heat or to provide solid state cooling, respectively.

This chapter reviews the main factors governing thermoelectric effects in solids, and how these factors may be manipulated to produce materials with high thermoelectric figure of merit. The first portion of the chapter covers the main features that determine electrical and thermal transport in crystalline semiconductors, while the latter portion discusses several new approaches to this old problem that hold promise for highly efficient thermoelectric materials in the future.

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Chemical Engineering and Materials Science, Michigan State University, East Lansing, USA

    Donald T. Morelli

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  1. Donald T. Morelli
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Correspondence to Donald T. Morelli .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. University of Saskatchewan, Saskatoon, Canada

    Safa Kasap

  2. Formerly with Leonardo MW Ltd, Southampton, UK

    Peter Capper

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Morelli, D.T. (2017). Thermoelectric Materials. In: Kasap, S., Capper, P. (eds) Springer Handbook of Electronic and Photonic Materials. Springer Handbooks. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-48933-9_57

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