Enhanced thermoelectric characteristics of Ag2Se nanoparticle thin films by embedding silicon nanowires

Seunggen Yang, Kyoungah Cho, Sangsig Kim

    Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

    1 Citation (Scopus)

    Abstract

    A solution-processable Ag2Se nanoparticle thin film (NPTF) is a prospective thermoelectric material for plastic-based thermoelectric generators, but its low electrical conductivity hinders the fabrication of high performance plastic-based thermoelectric generators. In this study, wedesignAg2Se NPTFs embedded with silicon nanowires (SiNWs) to improve their thermoelectric characteristics. The Seebeck coefficients are -233 and -240 μV/K, respectively, for a Ag2Se NPTF alone and a Ag2Se NPTF embedded with SiNWs. For the Ag2Se NPTF embedded with SiNWs, the electrical conductivity is improved from 0.15 to 18.5 S/m with the embedment of SiNWs. The thermal conductivities are determined by a lateral thermal conductivity measurement for nanomaterials and the thermal conductivities are 0.62 and 0.84 W/(m K) for a Ag2Se NPTF alone and a Ag2Se NPTF embedded with SiNWs, respectively. Due to the significant increase in the electrical conductivity and the insignificant increase in its thermal conductivity, the output power of the Ag2Se NPTF embedded with SiNWs is 120 times greater than that of the Ag2Se NPTF alone. Our results demonstrate that the Ag2Se NPTF embedded with SiNWs is a prospective thermoelectric material for high performance plastic-based thermoelectric generators.

    Original languageEnglish
    Article numberen13123072
    JournalEnergies
    Volume13
    Issue number12
    DOIs
    Publication statusPublished - 2020 Jun

    Bibliographical note

    Funding Information:
    Funding: This research was funded by [the Technology Development Program to Solve Climate Changes] grant number [NRF-2017M1A2A2087323]. And [the Brain Korea 21 Plus Project] in 2020 through the National Research Foundation of Korea (NRF) funded by the Ministry of Science, ICT & Future Planning, and a Korea University Grant.

    Publisher Copyright:
    © 2020 by the authors.

    Keywords

    • Silicon nanowires
    • Silver selenide nanoparticles
    • Thermoelectric
    • Thin film

    ASJC Scopus subject areas

    • Renewable Energy, Sustainability and the Environment
    • Energy Engineering and Power Technology
    • Energy (miscellaneous)
    • Control and Optimization
    • Electrical and Electronic Engineering

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