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Title: Tuning the Intermediate Valence Behavior in the Zintl Compound Yb 14 ZnSb 11 by Incorporation of RE 3+ [Yb 14–x RE x ZnSb 11 (0.2 ≤ x ≤ 0.7), RE = Sc, Y, La, Lu and Gd]
Award ID(s):
2001156
NSF-PAR ID:
10427161
Author(s) / Creator(s):
; ; ; ; ; ;
Date Published:
Journal Name:
Inorganic Chemistry
Volume:
62
Issue:
6
ISSN:
0020-1669
Page Range / eLocation ID:
2694 to 2704
Format(s):
Medium: X
Sponsoring Org:
National Science Foundation
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  1. null (Ed.)
    The Zintl phases, Yb 14 M Sb 11 ( M = Mn, Mg, Al, Zn), are now some of the highest thermoelectric efficiency p-type materials with stability above 873 K. Yb 14 MnSb 11 gained prominence as the first p-type thermoelectric material to double the efficiency of SiGe alloy, the heritage material in radioisotope thermoelectric generators used to power NASA’s deep space exploration. This study investigates the solid solution of Yb 14 Mg 1− x Al x Sb 11 (0 ≤ x ≤ 1), which enables a full mapping of the metal-to-semiconductor transition. Using a combined theoretical and experimental approach, we show that a second, high valley degeneracy ( N v = 8) band is responsible for the groundbreaking performance of Yb 14 M Sb 11 . This multiband understanding of the properties provides insight into other thermoelectric systems (La 3− x Te 4 , SnTe, Ag 9 AlSe 6 , and Eu 9 CdSb 9 ), and the model predicts that an increase in carrier concentration can lead to zT > 1.5 in Yb 14 M Sb 11 systems. 
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