Title :
The theoretical analysis of the thermoelectric semiconducting crystalline materials figure of merit
Author :
Bulat, L.P. ; Zakordonets, V.S.
Author_Institution :
Inst. of Thermoelectr., Acad. of Sci., Chernivtsi, Ukraine
Abstract :
The thermoelectric figure of merit z is computed for bipolar semiconducting materials with a degenerate gas of current carriers and a nonparabolic band structure. The factors that affect the value of z are analyzed. It is established that the figure of merit of such materials increases monotonically with increasing band gap, in contrast with semiconductors with a parabolic band. It is shown that zT<3 is always true in crystalline thermoelectric materials.
Keywords :
band structure; energy gap; semiconductor materials; semiconductors; thermoelectricity; band gap; bipolar semiconducting materials; degenerate gas of current carriers; nonparabolic band structure; parabolic band; theoretical analysis; thermoelectric semiconducting crystalline materials figure of merit; Acoustic scattering; Charge carriers; Conducting materials; Crystalline materials; Phonons; Semiconductivity; Semiconductor materials; Temperature; Thermal conductivity; Thermoelectricity;
Conference_Titel :
Thermoelectrics, 1996., Fifteenth International Conference on
Conference_Location :
Pasadena, CA, USA
Print_ISBN :
0-7803-3221-0
DOI :
10.1109/ICT.1996.553294
