Author(s) |
Bohra, A. K.; Bhatt, R.; Singh, A.; Basu, R.; Bhattacharya, S.; Meshram, K. N., Ahmad,
S.; Debnath, A. K.; Chauhan, A. K.; Bhatt, P.; Shah, K.; Bhotkar, K.; Sharma,
S.; Aswal, D. K.; Muthe, K. P.; Gadkari, S. C. (TPD;ApSD;SSPD)
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We report an improved thermoelectric performance of n-type Bi2Se3 bulk alloys synthesized by vacuum melt method followed by vacuum hot-pressing. In the samples so prepared, the synergetic combination of ultra low thermal conductivity (~0.7 W/m K), high Seebeck coefficient (~168 μV/K), and low electrical resistivity (15 μΩX-m) has been observed to successfully lead to a high figure-of-merit (ZT) of ~0.96 at 370 K. A detailed characterization of the samples reveals a presence of multiscale hierarchical defect structures i.e. atomic scale disorder arising from a multitude of factors such as large anharmonicity of Bi-Se bond due to electrostatic repulsion between the lone pair of Bi and charge of Se, nanoscale grains and dislocations trapped between mesoscale grains/grain boundaries accompanied by intrinsic layered structure of Bi2Se3. This compact layered grain structure in its consequence offers a high charge carrier mobility and thereby results into a high power factor, while multiscale hierarchical architecture accounts for the scattering of a wider spectrum of phonons leading to an ultra low thermal conductivity. In view of this promising thermoelectric performance together with the presence of copiously available constituent namely Se, the hot-pressed Bi2Se3 presents a technologically suitable and commercially viable alternative to the conventional Bi2Se3 which is based on expensive and scarcely available Te. |