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The thermal conductivity of inhomogeneous thermoelectric materials
Author(s) -
Goldsmid H. J.,
Sharp J. W.
Publication year - 2004
Publication title -
physica status solidi (b)
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.51
H-Index - 109
eISSN - 1521-3951
pISSN - 0370-1972
DOI - 10.1002/pssb.200402048
Subject(s) - thermoelectric effect , thermal conductivity , isothermal process , adiabatic process , crystallite , anisotropy , figure of merit , materials science , condensed matter physics , thermoelectric materials , electrical resistivity and conductivity , thermal , seebeck coefficient , thermodynamics , composite material , physics , optoelectronics , optics , metallurgy , quantum mechanics
Previous measurements on polycrystalline Bi–Sb have suggested an anomalously low value for the electronic thermal conductivity. These measurements were made using the Harman technique in which the figure of merit is found from the difference between the adiabatic and isothermal electrical resistivities. We now demonstrate that the determination of the thermal conductivity using this approach is unreliable if the material is inhomogeneous. Such inhomogeneity can be chemical in its origin or it can arise from anisotropic thermoelectric parameters in a polycrystalline sample. (© 2004 WILEY‐VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)