Investigation on halogen-doped n-type SnTe thermoelectrics

摘要

Recent theoretical predictions and experimental findings on the transport properties of n-type SnTe have triggered extensive researches on this simple binary compound,despite the realization of n-type SnTe being a great challenge.Herein,Cl as a donor dopant can effectively regulate the position of Fermi level in Sn_(0.6)Pb_(0.4)Te matrix and successfully achieve the n-type transport behavior in SnTe.An outstanding power factor of~14.7μW·cm^(-1)·K^(-2) at 300 K was obtained for Cl-doped Sn_(0.6)Pb_(0.4)Te sample.By combining the experimental analysis with theoretical calculations,the transport properties of n-type SnTe thermoelectrics doped with different halogen dopants(Cl,Br,and I)were then systematically investigated and estimated.The results demonstrated that Br and I had better doping efficiencies compared with Cl,which contributed to the well-optimized carrier concentrations of~1.03×10^(19)and~1.11×10^(19)cm^(-3)at 300 K,respectively.The improved n-type carrier concentrations effectively lead to the significant enhancement on the thermoelectric performance of n-type SnTe.Our study further promoted the experimental progress and deep interpretation of the transport features in n-type SnTe thermoelectrics.The present results could also be crucial for the development of n-type counterparts for SnTe-based thermoelectric devices.