Phase Interface Engineering Enables State-of-the-art Half-Heusler Thermoelectrics

Overview

Journal Nat Commun

Specialty Biology

Date 2024 Jul 16

PMID 39013905

Authors

Yihua Zhang

Guyang Peng

Shuankui Li

Haijun Wu

Kaidong Chen

Jiandong Wang

Zhihao Zhao

Tu Lyu

Yuan Yu

Chaohua Zhang

Yang Zhang

Chuansheng Ma

Shengwu Guo

Xiangdong Ding

Jun Sun

Fusheng Liu

Lipeng Hu

Affiliations

Soon will be listed here.

Abstract

In thermoelectric, phase interface engineering proves effective in reducing the lattice thermal conductivity via interface scattering and amplifying the density-of-states effective mass by energy filtering. However, the indiscriminate introduction of phase interfaces inevitably leads to diminished carrier mobility. Moreover, relying on a singular energy barrier is insufficient for comprehensive filtration of low-energy carriers throughout the entire temperature range. Addressing these challenges, we advocate the establishment of a composite phase interface using atomic layer deposition (ALD) technology. This design aims to effectively decouple the interrelated thermoelectric parameters in ZrNiSn. The engineered coherent dual-interface energy barriers substantially enhance the density-of-states effective mass across the entire temperature spectrum while preser carrier mobility. Simultaneously, the strong interface scattering on phonons is crucial for curtailing lattice thermal conductivity. Consequently, a 40-cycles TiO coating on ZrNiSnSb achieves an unprecedented zT value of 1.3 at 873 K. These findings deepen the understanding of coherent composite-phase interface engineering.

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