• Journal of Powder Materials
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• v.15 no.5
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• pp.352-358
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• 2008

The present study focused on the synthesis of a bismuth-antimony-tellurium-based thermoelectric nanopowders using plasma arc discharge process. The chemical composition, phase structure, particle size of the synthesized powders under various synthesis conditions were analyzed using XRF, XRD and SEM. The powders as synthesized were sintered by the plasma activated sintering. The thermoelectric properties of sintered body were analyzed by measuring Seebeck coefficient, specific electric resistivity and thermal conductivity. The chemical composition of the synthesized Bi-Sb-Te-based powders approached that of the raw material with an increasing DC current of the are plasma. The synthesized Bi-Sb-Te-based powder consist of a mixed phase structure of the $Bi_{0.5}Sb_{1.5}Te_{3}$, $Bi_{2}Te_{3}$ and $Sb_{2}Te_{3}$ phases. This powder has homogeneous mixing state of two different particles in an average particle size; about 100nm and about 500nm. The figure of merit of the sintered body of the synthesized 18.75 wt.%Bi-24.68 wt.%Sb-56.57 wt.%Te nanopowder showed higher value than one of the sintered body of the mechanically milled 12.64 wt.%Bi-29.47 wt.%Sb-57.89 wt.%Te powder.

• Journal of Powder Materials
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• v.17 no.4
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• pp.336-341
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• 2010

The present study focused on the synthesis of Bi-Sb-Te-based thermoelectric powder by an oxidereduction process. The phase structure, particle size of the synthesized powders were analyzed using XRD and SEM. The synthesized powder was sintered by the spark plasma sintering method. The thermoelectric property of the sintered body was evaluated by measuring the Seebeck coefficient and specific electric resistivity. The $Bi_{0.5}Sb_{1.5}Te_3$ powder had been synthesized by a combination of mechanical milling, calcination and reduction processes using mixture of $Bi_2O_3$, $Sb_2O_3$ and $TeO_2$ powders. The sintered body of the $Bi_{0.5}Sb_{1.5}Te_3$ powder synthesized by an oxide-reduction process showed p-type thermoelectric characteristics, even though it had lower thermoelectric properties than the sintered body of the $Bi_{0.5}Sb_{1.5}Te_3$ thermoelectric powder synthesized by the conventional melting-crushing method.

• Journal of Powder Materials
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• v.19 no.4
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• pp.285-290
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• 2012

The present study was focused on the analysis of the electric and thermal properties of spark plasma sintered $Bi_{0.5}Sb_{1.5}Te_3$ thermoelectric material. The crystal structure, microstructure, electric and thermal properties of the sintered body were evaluated by measuring XRD, SEM, electric resistivity, Hall effect and thermal conductivity. The $Bi_{0.5}Sb_{1.5}Te_3$ sintered body showed anisotropic crystal structure. The c-axis of the $Bi_{0.5}Sb_{1.5}Te_3$ crystal aligned in a parallel direction with applied pressure during spark plasma sintering. The degree of the crystal alignment increased with increasing sintering temperature and sintering time. The electric resistivity and thermal conductivity of the $Bi_{0.5}Sb_{1.5}Te_3$ sintered body showed anisotropic characteristics result from crystal alignment.

• Journal of Powder Materials
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• v.24 no.2
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• pp.108-114
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• 2017

We fabricate fine (<$20{\mu}m$) powders of $Bi_{0.5}Sb_{1.5}Te_3$ alloys using a large-scale production method and subsequently consolidate them at temperatures of 573, 623, and 673 K using a spark plasma sintering process. The microstructure, mechanical properties, and thermoelectric properties are investigated for each sintering temperature. The microstructural features of both the powders and bulks are characterized by scanning electron microscopy, and the crystal structures are analyzed by X-ray diffraction analysis. The grain size increases with increasing sintering temperature from 573 to 673 K. In addition, the mechanical properties increase significantly with decreasing sintering temperature owing to an increase in grain boundaries. The results indicate that the electrical conductivity and Seebeck coefficient ($217{\mu}V/K$) of the sample sintered at 673 K increase simultaneously owing to decreased carrier concentration and increased mobility. As a result, a high ZT value of 0.92 at 300 K is achieved. According to the results, a sintering temperature of 673 K is preferable for consolidation of fine (<$20{\mu}m$) powders.

• Korean Journal of Metals and Materials
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• v.47 no.4
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• pp.248-255
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• 2009

A micro thermoelectric device was processed by electroplating the n-type Bi-Te nanowires and ptype Sb-Te nanowires into an alumina template with 200 nm pores. Power generation characteristics of the micro devices composed of the Bi-Te nanowires, the Sb-Te nanowires, and both the Bi-Te and the Sb-Te nanowires were analyzed with applying a temperature difference of $40^{\circ}C$ across the devices along the thickness direction. The n-type Bi-Te and the p-type Sb-Te nanowire devices exhibited thermoelectric power outputs of $3.8{\times}10^{-10}W$ and $4.8{\times}10^{-10}W$, respectively. The output power of the device composed of both the Bi-Te and the Sb-Te nanowires decreased to $1.4{\times}10^{-10}W$ due to a large electrical resistance of the Cu electrode connecting the Bi-Te nanowire array with the Sb-Te nanowire array.

• Archives of Metallurgy and Materials
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• v.64 no.2
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• pp.591-595
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• 2019

In this study, an oxide reduction process and a reduction-sintering process were employed to synthesize a thermoelectric alloy from three thermoelectric composite oxide powders, and the thermoelectric properties were investigated as a function of the milling duration. Fine grain sizes were analyzed by via X-ray diffraction and scanning electron microscopy, to investigate the influence of the milling duration on the synthesized samples. It was found that microstructural changes, the Seebeck coefficient, and the electrical resistivity of the compounds were highly dependent on the sample milling duration. Additionally, the carrier concentration considerably increased in the samples milled for 6 h; this was attributed to the formation of antisite defects introduced by the accumulated thermal energy. Moreover, the highest value of ZT (=1.05) was achieved at 373K by the 6-h milled samples. The temperature at which the ZT value maximized varied according to the milling duration, which implies that the milling duration of the three thermoelectric composite oxide powders should be carefully optimized for their effective application.

• Archives of Metallurgy and Materials
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• v.65 no.3
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• pp.1105-1110
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• 2020

Due to air pollution, global warming and energy shortage demands new clean energy conversion technologies. The conversion of industrial waste heat into useful electricity using thermoelectric (TE) technology is a promising method in recent decades. Still, its applications are limited by the low efficiency of TE materials in the operating range between 400-600 K. In this work, we have fabricated Cu_0.005Bi_0.5Sb_1.495Te₃ powder using a single step gas atomization process followed by spark plasma sintering at different temperatures (623, 673, 723, and 773 K), and their thermoelectric properties were investigated. The variation of sintering temperature showed a significant impact on the grain size. The Seebeck coefficient values at room temperature increased significantly from 127 µVK to 151 µV/K with increasing sintering temperature from 623 K to 723 K due to decreased carrier concentration. The maximum Z T values for the four samples were similar in the range between 1.15 to 1.18 at 450 K, which suggest these materials could be used for power generation in the mid-temperature range (400-600 K).

• Proceedings of the Korean Vacuum Society Conference
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• 2016.02a
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• pp.222.2-222.2
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• 2016

트랜지스터 응용 등에 관한 연구가 활발해 지면서 에너지 밴드갭이 0 eV에 가까운 그래핀 이외의 밴드 갭 조절이 가능한 MoS2 (molybdenum disulfide), BN (boron nitride), Bi2Te3 (bismuth telluride), WS2 (tungsten disulfide) 등과 같은 이차원 Transition Metal DiChalcogenides (TMDC) 물질이 반도체 물질로 각광받고 있다. 특히 MoS2의 경우 단결정 덩어리 상태에서는 약 1.3 eV의 밴드갭을 가지나 두께가 줄어들어 두 층일 경우에는 약 1.65 eV, 단일층이 되면 약 1.9 eV의 밴드갭을 가져 박막 층수에 따라 에너지 밴드갭 조절이 가능한 것으로 알려져있다. 하지만 두께 조절이 가능하면서 대면적, 고품질을 가지는 MoS2 박막 합성은 아직 제한적이라 할 수 있으며 새로운 방법 및 물질에 대한 연구가 지속적으로 이루어 지고 있다. 따라서 본 연구에서는 다양한 층수를 지니는 MoS2 합성을 위해 나노 두께의 MoS2 박막을 CF4 plasma 를 이용하여 layer etching 진행하고 CF4 plasma 100초 etching 진행한 2 layer 두께의 MoS2를 기준으로 H2S plasma를 이용하여 treatment 진행하였다. 물리적, 화학적 분석은 Raman spectroscopy, XPS(X-ray Photoelectron Spectroscopy), AFM (Atomic Force Microscopy) 등을 이용해 진행하였고 이를 통해 MoS2 layer 감소 및 damage recovery 등을 확인하였다.

• Journal of Powder Materials
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• v.13 no.5 s.58
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• pp.313-320
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• 2006

The present study is to analyze the thermoelectric properties of $Bi_{0.4}Sb_{1.6}Te_3$ thermoelectric materials fabricated by the mechanical grinding process. The $Bi_{0.4}Sb_{1.6}Te_3$ powders were prepared by the combination of mechanical milling and reduction treating methods using simply crushed pre-alloyed $Bi_{0.4}Sb_{1.6}Te_3$ powder. The mechanical milling was carried out using the tumbler-ball mill and planetary ball mill. The tumbler-ball milling had an effect on the carrier mobility rather than the carrier concentration, whereas, the latter on the carrier concentration. The specific electric resistivity and Seebeck coefficient decreased with increasing the reduction-heat-treatment time. The thermal conductivity continuously increased with increasing the reduction-heat-treatment time. The figure of merit of the $Bi_{0.4}Sb_{1.6}Te_3$ sintered body prepared by the mechanical grinding process showed higher value than one of the sintered body of the simply crushed powder.

• Proceedings of the Korean Institute of Electrical and Electronic Material Engineers Conference
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• 2010.06a
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• pp.231-231
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• 2010

Thermoelectric properties of a multi-layered thin film, which was composed with indium selenide and bismuth telluride, were investigated. The structure of the layered thin film is Bi-Te /In-Se/Bi-Te and it was prepared on sapphire substrate by RF magnetron sputter using stoichiometric $Bi_2Te_3$ (99.9%) and $In_2Se_3$(99.99%) target at room temperature. Then, it was annealed at temperature range of 150 - $500^{\circ}C$ in Ar ambient. Structural characterizations were done using X-ray diffraction(XRD, BRUKER, D8, 60kW) and transmission electron microscopy (TEM, FEI, Tecnai, F30 S-Twin), respectively. Cross-section of multi-layer structure was observed by Scanning electron microscopy (SEM). The resistivity and Seebeck coefficient of these samples were also measured by conventional equipment at room temperature. The maximum value of power factor was $1.16\;{\mu}W/k^2m$ at annealing temperature of $400^{\circ}C$.