Investigation on structure and thermoelectric properties in p-type Bi0.48Sb1.52Te3 via PbTe incorporating

Abstract

Bismuth telluride alloys are the most commercially used thermoelectric materials. Herein, Bi0.48Sb1.52Te3 + x wt% PbTe (x = 0, 0.05, 0.1, and 0.15) composites have been prepared by the zone-melting method. The microstructure and thermoelectric properties of the composites are investigated. It is found that PbTe addition could effectively improve the electrical properties of Bi0.48Sb1.52Te3. As a result, a very large power factor of 55.5 µW cm−1 K−2 is achieved at 300 K for x = 0.05. Compared with the matrix, the largest figure of merit ZT for the composites shows slight enhancement, and the average figure of merit ZTave is obviously improved. This work indicated that a trace amount of PbTe can effectively improve the thermoelectric performance of Bi0.48Sb1.52Te3.