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Enhancement of the Thermoelectric Figure of Merit in Gated Bismuth Telluride Nanowires

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  31 January 2011

Igor Bejenari ,
Valeriu Kantser  and
Alexander Balandin
Igor Bejenari
Affiliation:
ibejenari@ee.ucr.edu, University of California at Riverside, Electrical Engineering, Riverside, California, United States
Valeriu Kantser
Affiliation:
kanster@lises.asm.md, Institute of Electronic Engineering & Industrial Technologies, Kishinev, Moldova
Alexander Balandin
Affiliation:
balandin@ee.ucr.edu, University of California at Riverside, Electrical Engineering, Riverside, California, United States
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Abstract

We theoretically studied how the electric filed effect can modify thermoelectric properties of intrinsic bismuth telluride nanowires, which are grown along [110] direction. The electronic structure and wave functions were calculated by solving the self-consistent system of the Schrodinger and Poisson equations by means of both the Thomas-Fermi approximation and the spectral element method. The thermoelectric parameters were determined using a constant relaxation-time approximation. The external electric field can increase the Seebeck coefficient of a nanowire with 7 - 15 nm lateral dimensions by nearly a factor of two, and enhance the figure of merit by an order of magnitude.

Keywords

nanostructurethermoelectricityelectronic structure
Type
Research Article
Information
MRS Online Proceedings Library (OPL) , Volume 1166: Symposium N – Materials and Devices for Thermal-to-Electric Energy Conversion , 2009 , 1166-N05-09
Copyright
Copyright © Materials Research Society 2009

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