High thermoelectric potential of <i>n</i>-type Pb1−<i>x</i>Ti<i>x</i>Te alloys

Abstract

In an attempt to reduce the reliance on fossil fuels, associated with severe environmental effects, the current research is focused on the identification of the thermoelectric potential of n-type Pb1−xTixTe alloys, with x values of up to 3%. A solubility limit of 0.5 at. % Ti in PbTe was identified, while beyond this composition, a precipitation of a TiTe2 phase was occurred. An impressive maximal dimensionless thermoelectric figure of merit ZT of ∼1.2 was obtained upon 0.1% Ti doping at 500 °C, indicating a ∼9% efficiency enhancement compared to an undoped PbTe. It is shown that generating a functionally graded material based on undoped PbTe as a low temperature segment and a 0.1% Ti doped PbTe as a high temperature segment has a potential to enhance the efficiency by ∼14% compared to the undoped sample.