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Single crystals of the quaternary chalcogenide BaCuGdTe 3 were obtained by direct reaction of elements allowing for a complete investigation of the intrinsic electrical and thermal properties of this previously uninvestigated material. The structure was investigated by high-resolution single-crystal synchrotron X-ray diffraction, revealing an orthorhombic crystal structure with the space group Cmcm. Although recently identified as a semiconductor suitable for thermoelectric applications from theoretical analyses, our electrical resistivity and Seebeck coefficient measurements show metallic conduction, the latter revealing strong phonon-drag. Temperature dependent hole mobility reveals dominant acoustic phonon scattering. Heat capacity data reveal a Debye temperature of 183 K and a very high density of states at the Fermi level, the latter confirming the metallic nature of this composition. Thermal conductivity is relatively high with Umklapp processes dominating thermal transport above the Debye temperature. The findings in this work lay the foundation for a more detailed understanding of the physical properties of this and similar multinary chalcogenide materials, and is part of the continuing effort in investigating quaternary chalcogenide materials and their suitability for use in technological applications.
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Size‐ and Temperature‐Dependent Suppression of Phonon Thermal Conductivity in Carbon Nanotube Thermoelectric Films
Abstract Heat transport in nanoscale carbon materials such as carbon nanotubes and graphene is normally dominated by phonons. Here, measurements of in‐plane thermal conductivity, electrical conductivity, and thermopower are presented from 77–350 K on two films with thickness <100 nm formed from semiconducting single‐walled carbon nanotubes. These measurements are made with silicon–nitride membrane thermal isolation platforms. The two films, formed from disordered networks of tubes with differing tube and bundle size, have very different thermal conductivity. One film matches a simple model of heat conduction assuming constant phonon velocity and mean free path, and 3D Debye heat capacity with a Debye temperature of 770 K. The second film shows a more complicated temperature dependence, with a dramatic drop in a relatively narrow window near 200 K where phonon contributions to thermal conductivity essentially vanish. This causes a corresponding large increase in thermoelectric figure‐of‐merit at the same temperature. A better understanding of this behavior can allow significant improvement in thermoelectric efficiency of these low‐cost earth‐abundant, organic electronic materials. Heat and charge conductivity near room temperature is also presented as a function of doping, which provides further information on the interaction of dopant molecules and phonon transport in disordered nanotube films.
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- Award ID(s):
- 1709646
- PAR ID:
- 10254295
- Publisher / Repository:
- Wiley Blackwell (John Wiley & Sons)
- Date Published:
- Journal Name:
- Advanced Electronic Materials
- Volume:
- 6
- Issue:
- 11
- ISSN:
- 2199-160X
- Format(s):
- Medium: X
- Sponsoring Org:
- National Science Foundation
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