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Colossal Seebeck effect enhanced by quasi-ballistic phonons dragging massive electrons in FeSb2

Author

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  • H. Takahashi

    (The University of Tokyo
    Nagoya University)

  • R. Okazaki

    (Nagoya University
    Faculty of Science and Technology, Tokyo University of Science)

  • S. Ishiwata

    (The University of Tokyo
    PRESTO, Japan Science and Technology Agency)

  • H. Taniguchi

    (Nagoya University)

  • A. Okutani

    (Center for Advanced High Magnetic Field Science, Graduate School of Science, Osaka University)

  • M. Hagiwara

    (Center for Advanced High Magnetic Field Science, Graduate School of Science, Osaka University)

  • I. Terasaki

    (Nagoya University)

Abstract

Phonon transport is an essential property of thermoelectric materials. Although the phonon carries heat, which reduces the thermoelectric efficiency, it contributes positively to the Seebeck coefficient S through the phonon-drag effect, as typified by the high-purity semiconductors, which show fairly large S at cryogenic temperatures. Although such a large S is attractive in terms of Peltier cooling, a clear guiding principle for designing thermoelectric materials enriched by the phonon-drag effect remains to be established. Here we demonstrate that a correlated semiconductor, FeSb2, is a promising thermoelectric material featuring quasi-ballistic phonons dragging d electrons with large effective mass. By changing the sample size within the sub-millimetre order for high-purity single crystals, we succeed in substantially increasing S to as much as −27 mV K−1 at low temperatures. Our results exemplify a strategy for exploring phonon-drag-based thermoelectric materials, the performance of which can be maximized by combining heavy electrons with ballistic phonons.

Suggested Citation

  • H. Takahashi & R. Okazaki & S. Ishiwata & H. Taniguchi & A. Okutani & M. Hagiwara & I. Terasaki, 2016. "Colossal Seebeck effect enhanced by quasi-ballistic phonons dragging massive electrons in FeSb2," Nature Communications, Nature, vol. 7(1), pages 1-6, November.
  • Handle: RePEc:nat:natcom:v:7:y:2016:i:1:d:10.1038_ncomms12732
    DOI: 10.1038/ncomms12732
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    Cited by:

    1. Hikari Manako & Shoya Ohsumi & Yoshiki J. Sato & R. Okazaki & D. Aoki, 2024. "Large transverse thermoelectric effect induced by the mixed-dimensionality of Fermi surfaces," Nature Communications, Nature, vol. 15(1), pages 1-8, December.

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