Abstract
To reduce consumption for ambient assisted living (AAL) applications, we propose the design and fabrication of flexible thin-film thermoelectric generators at a low manufacturing cost. The generators were fabricated using a combination of electrodeposition and transfer processes. N-type Bi2Te3 films and p-type Sb2Te3 films were formed on a stainless-steel substrate employing potentiostatic electrodeposition using a nitric acid-based bath, followed by a transfer process. Three types of flexible thin-film thermoelectric generators were fabricated. The open circuit voltage (Voc) and maximum output power (Pmax) were measured by applying a temperature difference between the ends of the generator. The thin-film generators obtained using thermoplastic sheets with epoxy resin exhibited a Voc that was tens of millivolts. In particular, the contact resistance of the thin-film generator decreased when silver paste was inserted at the junctions between the n- and p-type films. The most flexible thin-film generator fabricated in this study exhibited a Pmax of 10.4 nW at a temperature difference of 60 K. The current performance of the generators was too low, but we innovated a combination process to prepare them. It is expected to increase the performance by further decreasing the micro-cracks and contact resistance in the generators.
Highlights
Environmental energy harvesting has recently emerged as a viable technique to supplement battery supplies in energy-constrained embedded systems
Employing thermoelectric generators for ambient assisted living (AAL) applications requires that miniaturized generators be produced at a low manufacturing cost while still maintaining thermoelectric performance as high as that achieved with large-scale generators
We found that the surface morphologies of the sputtered films were changed by the bending conditions, but the thermoelectric properties were not greatly changed
Summary
Environmental energy harvesting has recently emerged as a viable technique to supplement battery supplies in energy-constrained embedded systems. Among thin-film deposition methods, electrodeposition is most favorable for reducing the manufacturing cost since high deposition rates can be achieved and since the use of a vacuum system and a large power supply is not necessary [32,33,34]. To produce thin-film thermoelectric generators at a lower manufacturing cost, a combined method employing electrodeposition and transfer processes is the most feasible approach [35]. Three types of flexible thin-film thermoelectric generators were fabricated using the combination method with different adhesive insulating sheets and varying the connecting approaches between the films. We used bismuth telluride (Bi2 Te3 ) and antimony telluride (Sb2 Te3 ) as the n- and p-type thermoelectric materials, respectively, because these materials exhibit a higher figure of merit near room temperature (RT) and similar thermal expansion rates, leading to the manufacture of devices with a high durability [36]. The open circuit voltage (V oc ) and maximum output power (Pmax ) were measured by applying a temperature difference between the ends of the generator
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