Thermoelectric Materials 1998 - The Next Generation Materials for Small- Scale Refrigeration and Power Generation Applications. Symposium Held November 30-December 3, 1998, Boston, Massachusetts. Volume 545

摘要

This proceedings volume from Symposium Z at the 1998 MRS Fall Meeting in Boston, Massachusetts, is the third in a series of MRS proceedings related to research in new thermoelectric materials (see MRS Proceedings Vol. 234 (1991) and Vol. 478 (ADA349632)). Over the past 30 years, alloys based on the Bi-Te compounds (refrigeration) (Bi(1-x)Sbx)2 (Te(1-x)Sbx)3 and Si(1-x)Gex compounds (power generation) have been extensively studied and optimized for their use as thermoelectric materials. Thermoelectric cooling is an environmentally friendly method of small-scale cooling in specific applications such as cooling computer chips and laser diodes. Currently, one of the most common uses of thermoelectric refrigeration materials is in small beverage coolers. Another very important application of thermoelectric materials is in power generation for deep-space probes such as in the Voyager and Cassini missions.