• Journal of the Korean Society for Precision Engineering
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• v.32 no.1
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• pp.69-74
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• 2015

Cadmium telluride (CdTe) is being developed for thin film of the X-Ray detector recently. But a rough surface of the CdTe should be improved for resolution and signal speed. This paper shows the study on the improvement of surface roughness and removal rate by applying Chemical Mechanical Polishing. The conventional potassium hydroxide (KOH) based colloidal silica slurry could not realize a mirror surface without physical defects, resulting in low material removal rate and many scratches on surface. In order to enhance chemical reaction such as form oxidized layer on the surface of cadmium telluride, we used hydrogen peroxide ($H_2O_2$) as an oxidizer. Consequently, in case of 3 wt% concentration of hydrogen peroxide, the highest MRR (938 nm/min) and the lowest surface roughness ($R_{p-v}=10.69nm$, $R_a=0.8nm$) could be obtained. EDS was also used to confirm the generated oxide of cadmium telluride surface.

• Korean Journal of Materials Research
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• v.16 no.5
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• pp.292-296
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• 2006

Effects of rapid thermal annealing of bismuth telluride thin films on their thermoelectric properties were investigated. Films with four different compositions were elaborated by co-sputtering of Bi and Te targets. Rapid thermal treatments in range of $300{\sim}400^{\circ}C$ were carried out during 10 minutes under the reducing atmosphere (Ar with 10% $H_2$). As the temperature of thermal treatment increased, carrier concentrations of films decreased while their mobilities increased. These changes were clearly observed for the films close to the stoichiometric composition. Rapid thermal treatment was found to be effective in improving the thermoelectric properties of $Bi_2Te_3$ films. Recrystallization of $Bi_2Te_3$ phase has caused the enhancement of thermoelectric properties, along with the decrease of the carrier concentration. Maximum values of Seebeck coefficient and power factor were obtained for the films treated at $400^{\circ}C$ (about $-128{\mu}V/K$ and $9{\times}10^{-4}\;W/K^2m$, respectively). With further higher temperature ($500^{\circ}C$), thermoelectric properties deteriorated due to the evaporation of Te element and subsequent disruption of film's structure.

• Proceedings of the Korean Vacuum Society Conference
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• 2014.02a
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• pp.304.2-304.2
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• 2014

Chalcogenides (Te,Se) and pnictogens(Bi,Sb) materials have been widely investigated as thermoelectric materials. Especially, Bi2Te3 (Bismuth telluride) compound thermoelectric materials in thin film and nanowires are known to have the highest thermoelectric figure of merit ZT at room temperature. Currently, the thermoelectric material research is mostly driven in two directions: (1) enhancing the Seebeck coefficient, electrical conductivity using quantum confinement effects and (2) decreasing thermal conductivity using phonon scattering effect. Herein we demonstrated influence of annealing temperature on structural and thermoelectrical properties of Bismuth-telluride-selenide ternary compound thin film. Te-rich Bismuth-telluride-selenide ternary compound thin film prepared co-deposited by thermal evaporation techniques. After annealing treatment, co-deposited thin film was transformed amorphous phase to Bi2Te3-Bi2Te2Se1 polycrystalline thin film. In the experiment, to investigate the structural and thermoelectric characteristics of Bi2Te3-i2Te2Se1 films, we measured Rutherford Backscattering spectrometry (RBS), X-ray diffraction (XRD), Raman spectroscopy, Scanning eletron microscopy (SEM), Transmission electron microscopy (TEM), Seebeck coefficient measurement and Hall measurement. After annealing treatment, electrical conductivity and Seebeck coefficient was increased by defect states dominated by selenium vacant sites. These charged selenium vacancies behave as electron donors, resulting in carrier concentration was increased. Moreover, Thermal conductivity was significantly decreased because phonon scattering was enhanced through the grain boundary in Bi2Te3-Bi2Te2Se1 polycrystalline compound. As a result, The enhancement of thermoelectric figure-of-merit could be obtained by optimal annealing treatment.

• Journal of the Korean Electrochemical Society
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• v.23 no.1
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• pp.18-23
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• 2020

Antimony telluride (Sb_xTe_y) thin films were synthesized by an electrodeposition method with a control of applied potential at room temperature. Characterization of electrical and thermoelectric properties such as conductivity, Seebeck coefficient, and power factor (P.F.) were conducted as a function of the chemical composition of the electrodeposited films. Morphology of thin films were dense and uniform and the composition was tailored from 25 to 60 at.% of the Sb content by altering the applied potential from -0.13 to -0.27 V (vs. SCE). The conductivity of the films were ranged from 2 × 10^-4 ~ 5 × 10^-1 S/cm indicating their amorphous behavior. The meaured Seebeck coefficient of films were relatively high compared to that of bulk single cyrstal Sb_xTe_y due to their low carrier concentration. The variation of the Seebeck coefficient of the films was also related to the change of chemical composition, showing the power factor of ~10 ㎼/mK².

• Electrical & Electronic Materials
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• v.24 no.7
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• pp.10-17
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• 2011

현재 개발 중인 Chalcogenide계 열전재료 중에서, 이방성 재료인 Thallium chalcogenide, Alkalimetal bismuth chalcogenide, Bismuth telluride와 등방성 재료인 Lead telluride, Silver antimony telluride, TAGS, LAST 및 SALT를 소개하였고, 이 재료들에 대한 연구 동향을 살펴보았다. Chalcogenide는 S, Se, Te 및 다른 원소와의 다양한 조합에 의해, 넓은 온도범위에서 열전재료로 응용하기 위한 밴드갭 에너지의 조절이 가능하다. 또한 합성공정에 따른 상변태, 석출 등 구조변화에 따른 열전특성의 변화를 기대할 수 있어 열전재료 개발 초기부터 활발한 연구가 진행되어 왔다. 과거의 전통적인 Chalcogenide계 열전재료뿐만 아니라, Chalcogenide계 열전 신소재에 대해서도 살펴보았다. Chalcogenide는 전자적, 광학적, 열적 성질 등 특성이 독특하고 변화가 무궁무진하여 아주 매력적이기 때문에, 앞으로도 계속 열전재료로서 각광받는 물질군으로 판단된다. 그림 11에 현재까지 ZT의 최댓값이 1이 넘는다고 보고된 열전재료의 성능지수를 요약하였다.

• Korean Journal of Materials Research
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• v.22 no.6
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• pp.280-284
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• 2012

Bismuth antimony telluride (BiSbTe) thermoelectric materials were successfully prepared by a spark plasma sintering process. Crystalline BiSbTe ingots were crushed into small pieces and then attrition milled into fine powders of about 300 nm ~ 2${\mu}m$ size under argon gas. Spark plasma sintering was applied on the BiSbTe powders at 240, 320, and $380^{\circ}C$, respectively, under a pressure of 40 MPa in vacuum. The heating rate was $50^{\circ}C$/min and the holding time at the sintering temperature was 10 min. At all sintering temperatures, high density bulk BiSbTe was successfully obtained. The XRD patterns verify that all samples were well matched with the $Bi_{0.5}Sb_{1.5}Te_{3}$. Seebeck coefficient (S), electric conductivity (${\sigma}$) and thermal conductivity (k) were evaluated in a temperature range of $25{\sim}300^{\circ}C$. The thermoelectric properties of BiSbTe were evaluated by the thermoelectric figure of merit, ZT (ZT = $S^2{\sigma}T$/k). The grain size and electric conductivity of sintered BiSbTe increased as the sintering temperature increased but the thermal conductivity was similar at all sintering temperatures. Grain growth reduced the carrier concentration, because grain growth reduced the grain boundaries, which serve as acceptors. Meanwhile, the carrier mobility was greatly increased and the electric conductivity was also improved. Consequentially, the grains grew with increasing sintering temperature and the figure of merit was improved.

• Journal of Powder Materials
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• v.17 no.2
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• pp.136-141
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• 2010

Bismuth-telluride based $(Bi_{0.2}Sb_{0.8})_2Te_3$ thermoelectric powders were fabricated by two-step planetary milling process which produces bimodal size distribution ranging $400\;nm\;{\sim}\;2\;{\mu}m$. The powders were reduced in hydrogen atmosphere to minimize oxygen contents which cause degradation of thermoelectric performance by decreasing electrical conductivity. Oxygen contents were decreased from 0.48% to 0.25% by the reduction process. In this study, both the as-synthesized and the reduced powders were consolidated by the spark plasma sintering process at $350^{\circ}C$ for 10 min at the heating rate of $100^{\circ}C/min$ and then their thermoelectric properties were investigated. The sintered samples using the reduced p-type thermoelectric powders show 15% lower specific electrical resistivity ($0.8\;m{\Omega}{\cdot}cm$) than those of the as-synthesized powders while Seebeck coefficient and thermal conductivity do not change a lot. The results confirmed that ZT value of thermoelectric performance at room temperature was improved by 15% due to high electric conductivity caused by the controlled oxygen contents present at bismuth telluride materials.

• Journal of Powder Materials
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• v.30 no.4
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• pp.318-323
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• 2023

The thermoelectric effect, which converts waste heat into electricity, holds promise as a renewable energy technology. Recently, bismuth telluride (Bi2Te3)-based alloys are being recognized as important materials for practical applications in the temperature range from room temperature to 500 K. However, conventional sintering processes impose limitations on shape-changeable and tailorable Bi₂Te₃ materials. To overcome these issues, three-dimensional (3D) printing (additive manufacturing) is being adopted. Although some research results have been reported, relatively few studies on 3D printed thermoelectric materials are being carried out. In this study, we utilize extrusion 3D printing to manufacture n-type Bi_1.7Sb_0.3Te₃ (N-BST). The ink is produced without using organic binders, which could negatively influence its thermoelectric properties. Furthermore, we introduce graphene oxide (GO) at the crystal interface to enhance the electrical properties. The formed N-BST composites exhibit significantly improved electrical conductivity and a higher Seebeck coefficient as the GO content increases. Therefore, we propose that the combination of the extrusion 3D printing process (Direct Ink Writing, DIW) and the incorporation of GO into N-BST offers a convenient and effective approach for achieving higher thermoelectric efficiency.

• Ceramist
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• v.15 no.4
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• pp.32-40
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• 2012

• Journal of Powder Materials
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• v.20 no.5
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• pp.345-349
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• 2013

Carbon nanotube-dispersed bismuth telluride matrix (CNT/$Bi_2Te_3$) nanopowders were synthesized by chemical routes followed by a ball-milling process. The microstructures of the synthesized CNT/$Bi_2Te_3$ nanopowders showed the characteristic microstructure of CNTs dispersed among disc-shaped $Bi_2Te_3$ nanopowders with as an average size of 500 nm in-plane and a few tens of nm in thickness. The prepared nanopowders were sintered into composites with a homogeneous dispersion of CNTs in a $Bi_2Te_3$ matrix. The dimensionless figure-of-merit of the composite showed an enhanced value compared to that of pure $Bi_2Te_3$ at the room temperature due to the reduced thermal conductivity and increased electrical conductivity with the addition of CNTs.