Abstract
Thin-film thermoelectrics (TE) are of significance for micro-TE coolers and generators. AgSbTe2 is attracting extensive attention due to the ultra-low thermal conductivity and large Seebeck coefficient, but the TE performance of AgSbTe2 film is still not satisfactory. Herein, oriented Cd-doped AgSbTe2 films have been prepared by magnetron sputtering. Tuning the annealing temperature can change the concentration of vacancies and grain size of the AgSbTe2 film, leading to enhanced electrical conductivity and power factor. Due to the effective scattering induced by the nanostructure and grain boundaries, the thermal conductivity of the AgSbTe2-based thin films is also significantly reduced. As a result, the figure of merit zT can reach 1.38 at 523 K, and the average zT reaches 0.91 in the temperature range from 300 to 523 K. Our work demonstrates that the modulation of vacancies and microstructures is a feasible way to enhance the TE performance of the AgSbTe2-based films.
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