Snyder G Jeffrey, Toberer Eric S
Materials Science, California Institute of Technology, 1200 East California Boulevard, Pasadena, California 91125, USA.
Nat Mater. 2008 Feb;7(2):105-14. doi: 10.1038/nmat2090.
Thermoelectric materials, which can generate electricity from waste heat or be used as solid-state Peltier coolers, could play an important role in a global sustainable energy solution. Such a development is contingent on identifying materials with higher thermoelectric efficiency than available at present, which is a challenge owing to the conflicting combination of material traits that are required. Nevertheless, because of modern synthesis and characterization techniques, particularly for nanoscale materials, a new era of complex thermoelectric materials is approaching. We review recent advances in the field, highlighting the strategies used to improve the thermopower and reduce the thermal conductivity.
热电材料能够从废热中发电或用作固态珀耳帖冷却器，在全球可持续能源解决方案中可能发挥重要作用。这一发展取决于能否找到比目前现有材料具有更高热电效率的材料，而这是一项挑战，因为所需的材料特性相互冲突。不过，由于现代合成和表征技术，特别是针对纳米级材料的技术，一个复杂热电材料的新时代正在来临。我们回顾了该领域的最新进展，重点介绍了用于提高热功率和降低热导率的策略。
