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Transport Properties of Superlattice Nanowires and Their Potential for Thermoelectric Applications

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  11 February 2011

Yu-Ming Lin  and
Mildred S. Dresselhaus
Yu-Ming Lin
Affiliation:
Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA 02139
Mildred S. Dresselhaus
Affiliation:
Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA 02139 Department of Physics, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA 02139
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Abstract

A theoretical model for the electronic structure and transport properties of superlattice (SL) nanowires is presented, based on the electronic tunneling between quantum dots. Due to the periodic potential perturbation, SL nanowires exhibit unusual features in the electronic density of states that are absent in homogeneous nanowires. Transport property calculations of PbSe/PbS SL nanowires are presented, showing improved thermoelectric performance compared to homogeneous nanowires because of a lower lattice thermal conductivity and an enhanced Seebeck coefficient, indicating that SL nanowires are promising systems for thermoelectric applications.

Type
Research Article
Information
MRS Online Proceedings Library (OPL) , Volume 737 , 2002 , E17.5
Copyright
Copyright © Materials Research Society 2003

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References

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