Abstract
Polycrystalline Sb2Te3/Te nanocomposites were prepared using the melt-quenching process, wherein different quenching mediums such as alkaline ice water, ice water, normal water, liquid nitrogen, and air-cooling were used. The existence of both Sb2Te3 and Te phases was revealed by various structural characterizations. The rate of melt solidification has a significant influence on the composition, microstructure, and thermoelectric transport properties of Sb2Te3/Te nanocomposites. The moderate cooling rate (normal water and liquid nitrogen cooling) of melt solidification showed a higher figure of merit (zT) value of ~0.25 at 423 K due to higher defect density. The different zT values observed for different quenching mediums and the correlation between melt solidification rate and the structural and thermoelectric transport properties were discussed in this paper.
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