Concept study for a high-efficiency nanowire based thermoelectric

Abstract

Materials capable of highly efficient, direct thermal-to-electric energy conversion wouldhave substantial economic potential. Theory predicts that thermoelectric efficienciesapproaching the Carnot limit can be achieved at low temperatures in one-dimensionalconductors that contain an energy filter such as a double-barrier resonant tunnellingstructure. The recent advances in growth techniques suggest that such devices can now berealized in heterostructured, semiconductor nanowires. Here we propose specific structuralparameters for InAs/InP nanowires that may allow the experimental observation ofnear-Carnot efficient thermoelectric energy conversion in a single nanowire at lowtemperature.