Heavy Rare Earth Element Gd Enhancing Thermoelectric Performance in p-Type Polycrystalline SnSe via Optimizing Carrier Transport and Density of States

doi:10.1007/s40242-023-3120-3

Abstract

Abstract: Tin selenide(SnSe) material exhibits very excellent thermoelectric properties in both p- and n-type single crystals, benefiting from advantageous electronic structure and ultra-low lattice thermal conductivity. However, poor mechanical properties and time-consuming production limit its practical application, and polycrystalline SnSe has attracted great attention in recent years. Herein, the SnSe microplates are prepared by a facile solvothermal method and compacted by spark plasma sintering (SPS). With enhanced electrical conductivity(σ) and optimized Seebeck coefficient(S) benefited from the Sn vacancies and increased density of states effective mass by the incorporating of heavy rare earth element Gd, an enhanced power factor(PF) value of about 0.86 mW/(m·K²) is realized in the p-type polycrystalline Sn_0.985Gd_0.015Se sample. Combined with the medium total thermal conductivity κ_tot and lattice thermal conductivity κ_lat of 0.7 and 0.56 W/(m·K), respectively, an enhanced peak dimensionless figure of merit(ZT) of ca. 1.1 was achieved at 873 K along vertical to the SPS pressing direction. The average ZT was also improved as compared to that of the pristine SnSe sample.

Key words: Thermoelectric, SnSe, Gd, Doping

XU Pengfei, HUA Yezhen, JIN Kangpeng, XU Biao. Heavy Rare Earth Element Gd Enhancing Thermoelectric Performance in p-Type Polycrystalline SnSe via Optimizing Carrier Transport and Density of States[J]. Chemical Research in Chinese Universities, 2023, 39(4): 690-696.

References

[1] Snyder G. J., Toberer E. S., Nat. Mater., 2008, 7, 105
[2] Bell L. E., Science, 2008, 321, 1457.
[3] Heremans J. P., Jovovic V., Toberer E. S., Saramat A., Kurosaki K., Charoenphakdee A., Yamanaka S., Snyder G. J., Science, 2008, 321, 554
[4] Xu P., Zhao W., Liu X., Jia B., He J., Fu L., Xu B., Adv. Mater., 2022, 34, 2202949
[5] Zhao L.-D., Chang C., Tan G., Kanatzidis M. G., Energy Environ. Sci., 2016, 9, 3044
[6] Zhao L.-D., Lo S.-H., Zhang Y., Sun H., Tan G., Uher C., Wolverton C., Dravid V. P., Kanatzidis M. G., Nature, 2014, 508, 373
[7] Chang C., Wu M., He D., Pei Y., Wu C.-F., Wu X., Yu H., Zhu F., Wang K., Chen Y., Huang L., Li J.-F., He J., Zhao L.-D., Science, 2018, 360, 778
[8] Zhou C., Lee Y. K., Yu Y., Byun S., Luo Z.-Z., Lee H., Ge B., Lee Y.-L., Chen X., Lee J. Y., Cojocaru-Mirédin O., Chang H., Im J., Cho S.-P., Wuttig M., Dravid V. P., Kanatzidis M. G., Chung I., Nat. Mater., 2021, 20, 1378
[9] Chandra S., Bhat U., Dutta P., Bhardwaj A., Datta R., Biswas K., Adv. Mater., 2022, 34, 2203725
[10] Liu J., Wang P., Wang M., Xu R., Zhang J., Liu J., Li D., Liang N., Du Y., Chen G., Tang G., Nano Energy, 2018, 53, 683
[11] Li S., Lou X., Li X., Zhang J., Li D., Deng H., Liu J., Tang G., Chem. Mater., 2020, 32, 9761
[12] Liu W., Kim H. S., Chen S., Jie Q., Lv B., Yao M., Ren Z., Opeil C. P., Wilson S., Chu C.-W., Ren Z., Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci., 2015, 112, 3269
[13] Duong A. T., Nguyen V. Q., Duvjir G., Duong V. T., Kwon S., Song J. Y., Lee J. K., Lee J. E., Park S., Min T., Lee J., Kim J., Cho S., Nat. Commun., 2016, 7, 13713
[14] Wei W., Chang C., Yang T., Liu J., Tang H., Zhang J., Li Y., Xu F., Zhang Z., Li J.-F., Tang G., J. Am. Chem. Soc., 2018, 140, 499
[15] Su L., Wang D., Wang S., Qin B., Wang Y., Qin Y., Jin Y., Chang C., Zhao L.-D., Science, 2022, 375, 1385
[16] Peng K., Zhang B., Wu H., Cao X., Li A., Yang D., Lu X., Wang G., Han X., Uher C., Zhou X., Mater. Today, 2018, 21, 501
[17] Hong M., Chen Z.-G., Yang L., Chasapis T. C., Kang S. D., Zou Y., Auchterlonie G. J., Kanatzidis M. G., Snyder G. J., Zou J., J. Mater. Chem. A, 2017, 5, 10713
[18] Yu B., Zebarjadi M., Wang H., Lukas K., Wang H., Wang D., Opeil C., Dresselhaus M., Chen G., Ren Z., Nano Lett., 2012, 12, 2077
[19] Zhao W., Jin K., Fu L., Shi Z., Xu B., Nano Lett., 2022, 22, 4750
[20] Jin K., Tiwari J., Feng T., Lou Y., Xu B., Nano Energy, 2022, 100, 107478
[21] Zhang W., Lou Y., Dong H., Wu F., Tiwari J., Shi Z., Feng T., Pantelides S. T., Xu B., Chem. Sci., 2022, 13, 10461
[22] Wu F., Yuan J., Lai W., Fu L., Xu B., Nano Res., 2022, 15, 7713
[23] Ismael A. K., Lambert C. J., Nanoscale Horiz., 2020, 5, 1073
[24] Li F., Wang W., Ge Z.-H., Zheng Z., Luo J., Fan P., Li B., Materials, 2018, 11, 203
[25] Li S., Yin L., Liu Y., Wang X., Chen C., Zhang Q., J. Mater. Sci. Technol., 2023, 143, 234
[26] Li S., Zhang F., Chen C., Li X., Cao F., Sui J., Liu X., Ren Z., Zhang Q., Acta Mater., 2020, 190, 1
[27] Zhang S., Zhu C., He X., Wang J., Luo F., Wang J., Liu H., Sun Z., J. Alloys Compd., 2022, 910, 164900
[28] Liu H., Zhang S., Zhang Y., Zong S., Li W., Zhu C., Luo F., Wang J., Sun Z., ACS Appl. Energy Mater., 2022, 5, 15093
[29] Lin C.-C., Lydia R., Yun J. H., Lee H. S., Rhyee J. S., Chem. Mater., 2017, 29, 5344
[30] Blöchl P. E., Phys. Rev. B, 1994, 50, 17953
[31] Perdew J. P., Burke K., Ernzerhof M., Phys. Rev. Lett., 1996, 77, 3865
[32] Kresse G., Furthmüller J., Phys. Rev. B, 1996, 54, 11169
[33] Monkhorst H. J., Pack J. D., Phys. Rev. B, 1976, 13, 5188
[34] Van de Walle C. G., Neugebauer J., J. Appl. Phys., 2004, 95, 3851
[35] Shi X., Wu A., Feng T., Zheng K., Liu W., Sun Q., Hong M., Pantelides S. T., Chen Z.-G., Zou J., Adv. Energy Mater., 2019, 9, 1803242
[36] Chandra S., Biswas K., J. Am. Chem. Soc., 2019, 141, 6141
[37] Dutta M., Biswas R. K., Pati S. K., Biswas K., ACS Energy Lett., 2021, 6, 1625
[38] Zhao L.-D., Tan G., Hao S., He J., Pei Y., Chi H., Wang H., Gong S., Xu H., Dravid V. P., Uher C., Snyder G. J., Wolverton C., Kanatzidis M. G., Science, 2016, 351, 141
[39] Jin M., Chen Z., Tan X., Shao H., Liu G., Hu H., Xu J., Yu B., Shen H., Xu J., Jiang H., Pei Y., Jiang J., ACS Energy Lett., 2018, 3, 689
[40] Pei Y., Shi X., LaLonde A., Wang H., Chen L., Snyder G. J., Nature, 2011, 473, 66