Design and performance of transverse-type thin-film micro thermoelectric generators

Abstract

We investigate the design and performance of thin-film micro thermoelectric generators (µTEGs) using human body heat for wearable device applications, in which various module structures using different thermal-isolations are examined. A transverse type of µTEG suitable for a thin-film thermopile is employed for the modules. The thermal and electrical insulation of the interspace between the hot and cold plates of the modules is an important factor to determine the output power of the µTEGs. A module using vacuum thermal-isolation gives the performance limit of the µTEGs. On the other hand, an easy-to-fabricate insulator-based thermal-isolation severely degrades the performance. A new module structure using insulator/vacuum-hybrid thermal-isolation also has a device-process-friendly structure and in addition can exhibit high output power close to the performance limit achieved by the vacuum thermal-isolation module, which would be adaptable to the power source of wearable devices for internet-of-humans.