Fabrication and modeling of an in-plane thermoelectric micro-generator

A thermoelectric in-plane micro-generator has been fabricated using compatible standard semiconductor technologies. The active material is a fine-grained polycrystalline silicon material laid on a dielectric membrane sustained by a silicon frame. A simplified analytical one-dimensional model of the micro-generator has been made to find the optimum thermoelectric film thickness and thermoelectric leg length. The optimal geometry of the micro-generator depends on the thermal properties and emissivity of the materials as well as on its working environment i.e. air or vacuum and on its operational mode. These investigations have been extended to a more realistic geometry of micro-generators and to more efficient thermoelectric materials, using a numerical model. The performance of such micro-generators is predicted for various materials and geometry combinations.