Phonon thermal conductivity suppression of bulk silicon nanowire composites for efficient thermoelectric conversion

Vertically-aligned silicon nanowires (SiNWs) that demonstrate reductions of phonon thermal conductivities are ideal components for thermoelectric devices. In this paper, we present large-area silicon nanowire arrays in various lengths using a silver-induced, electroless-etching method that is applicable to both n- and p-type substrates. The measured thermal conductivities of nanowire composites are significantly reduced by up to 43%, compared to that of bulk silicon. Detailed calculations based on the series thermal resistance and phonon radiative transfer models confirm the reduction of thermal conductivity not only due to the increased air fraction, but also the nanowire size effect, suggesting the soundness of employing bulk silicon nanowire composites as efficient thermoelectric materials.