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Thermoelectric properties of spark plasma sintered lead telluride nanocubes

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  13 August 2015

Bayikadi Khasimsaheb ,
Sonnathi Neeleshwar ,
Mandava Srikanth ,
Sivaiah Bathula ,
Bhasker Gahtori ,
Avanish Kumar Srivsatava ,
Ajay Dhar ,
Amirthapandian Sankarakumar ,
Binaya Kumar Panigrahi  and
Sriparna Bhattacharya
...Show all authors
Bayikadi Khasimsaheb
Affiliation:
University School of Basic & Applied Sciences, Guru Gobind Singh Indraprastha University, New Delhi 110074, India
Sonnathi Neeleshwar*
Affiliation:
University School of Basic & Applied Sciences, Guru Gobind Singh Indraprastha University, New Delhi 110074, India
Mandava Srikanth
Affiliation:
University School of Basic & Applied Sciences, Guru Gobind Singh Indraprastha University, New Delhi 110074, India
Sivaiah Bathula
Affiliation:
CSIR-Network of Institutes for Solar Energy, Materials Physics and Engineering Division, CSIR-National Physical Laboratory, New Delhi 110012, India
Bhasker Gahtori
Affiliation:
CSIR-Network of Institutes for Solar Energy, Materials Physics and Engineering Division, CSIR-National Physical Laboratory, New Delhi 110012, India
Avanish Kumar Srivsatava
Affiliation:
CSIR-Network of Institutes for Solar Energy, Materials Physics and Engineering Division, CSIR-National Physical Laboratory, New Delhi 110012, India
Ajay Dhar
Affiliation:
CSIR-Network of Institutes for Solar Energy, Materials Physics and Engineering Division, CSIR-National Physical Laboratory, New Delhi 110012, India
Amirthapandian Sankarakumar
Affiliation:
Materials Physics Division, Materials Science Group, Indira Gandhi Center for Atomic Research, Kalpakkam 603102, India
Binaya Kumar Panigrahi
Affiliation:
Materials Physics Division, Materials Science Group, Indira Gandhi Center for Atomic Research, Kalpakkam 603102, India
Sriparna Bhattacharya*
Affiliation:
Departments of Physics and Astronomy, Clemson Nanomaterials Center, COMSET, Clemson University, Clemson, South Carolina 29634, USA
Ramakrishna Podila
Affiliation:
Departments of Physics and Astronomy, Clemson Nanomaterials Center, COMSET, Clemson University, Clemson, South Carolina 29634, USA
Apparao M. Rao
Affiliation:
Departments of Physics and Astronomy, Clemson Nanomaterials Center, COMSET, Clemson University, Clemson, South Carolina 29634, USA
*
a)Address all correspondence to these authors. e-mail: [email protected]
b)e-mail: [email protected]
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Abstract

We report a cost-effective, surfactant-free, and scalable synthesis technique for lead telluride (PbTe) nanocubes by a chemical precipitation method. The high-resolution transmission electron microscopy studies indicated the evolution of nucleation centers (spherical) into nanocubes with the addition of the Pb and Te atoms. The spark plasma sintered PbTe nanocubes exhibited an enhanced Seebeck coefficient, S > +400 µV, higher than the reported values of the bulk PbTe over an extended temperature range of 300–425 K, and a moderate electrical conductivity, σ ∼ 8000 S/m at 300 K. A significant reduction in the lattice thermal conductivity was observed due to effective phonon scattering from the presence of numerous interfaces introduced by nanostructuring. The resulting figure-of-merit (ZT) ∼ 0.45 at 300 K is higher than the reported values at this temperature in other PbTe nanostructures. Moreover, a moderate thermoelectric compatibility factor makes the PbTe nanocubes a potential candidate for green energy generation.

Keywords

lead telluride nanocubesprecipitation methodelectrical conductivitySeebeck coefficientthermoelectric comparability factor
Type
Articles
Information
Journal of Materials Research , Volume 30 , Issue 17: Focus Issue: Advances in Thermoelectric Materials II , 14 September 2015 , pp. 2638 - 2648
Copyright
Copyright © Materials Research Society 2015 

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