Abstract
A new process for fabricating a low-cost thermoelectric module using a screen-printing method has been developed. Thermoelectric properties of screen-printed ZnSb films were investigated in an effort to develop a thermoelectric module with low cost per watt. The screen-printed Zn x Sb1−x films showed a low carrier concentration and high Seebeck coefficient when x was in the range of 0.5 to 0.57 and the annealing temperature was kept below 550°C. When the annealing temperature was higher than 550°C, the carrier concentration of the Zn x Sb1−x films reached that of a metal, leading to a decrease of the Seebeck coefficient. In the present experiment, the optimized carrier concentration of screen-printed ZnSb was 7 × 1018/cm3. The output voltage and power density of the ZnSb film were 10 mV and 0.17 mW/cm2, respectively, at ΔT = 50 K. A thermoelectric module was produced using the proposed screen-printing approach with ZnSb and CoSb3 as p-type and n-type thermoelectric materials, respectively, and copper as the pad metal.
Article PDF
Similar content being viewed by others
Avoid common mistakes on your manuscript.
References
G. Jeffrey Snyder and E.S. Toberer, Nat. Mater. 7, 105 (2008).
A.L. Vayner, Mosc. (1983), p. 30.
D. Astrain, J.G. Vián, and M. Domínguez, Appl. Therm. Eng. 23, 2183 (2003).
R. Venkatasubramanian, E. Siivola, T. Colpitts, and B. O’Quinn, Nature 413, 597 (2001).
B.J. Huang, C.J. Chin, and C.L. Duang, Int. J. Refrig. 23, 208 (2000).
M. Yamanashi, J. Appl. Phys. 80, 5494 (1996).
S. Goktun, Energ. Source 18, 531 (1996).
F.D. Rosi, Solid State Electron 11, 833 (1968).
G. Min and D.M. Rowe, J. Power Sources 38, 253 (1992).
D.M. Rowe and G. Min, J. Power Sources 73, 193 (1998).
B.I. Ismail and W.H. Ahmed, Recent Pat. Electr. Eng. 2, 27 (2009).
Y. Kawaharada, K. Kurosaki, M. Uno, and S. Yamanaka, J. Alloys Compd. 315, 193 (2001).
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Lee, HB., Yang, H.J., We, J.H. et al. Thin-Film Thermoelectric Module for Power Generator Applications Using a Screen-Printing Method. J. Electron. Mater. 40, 615–619 (2011). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11664-010-1481-0
Received:
Accepted:
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11664-010-1481-0