A case study of FeTaZ (Z = Al, Ga, In) Heusler alloys: hunt for half-metallic behavior and thermoelectricity.

We have computed the electronic structure and transport properties of FeTaZ (Z = Al, Ga, In) alloys by the full-potential linearized augmented plane wave (FPLAPW) method. The magnetic conduct in accordance with the Slater-Pauling rule classifies them as non-magnetic alloys with total zero magnetic moment. The semiconducting band profile and the density of states in the post DFT treatment are used to estimate the relations among various transport parameters such as Seebeck coefficient, electrical conductivity, thermal conductivity, and figure of merit. The Seebeck coefficient variation and band profiles describe the p-type behavior of charge carriers. The electrical and thermal conductivity plots follow the semiconducting nature of bands along the Fermi level. The overall measurements show that semi-classical Boltzmann transport theory has well-behaved potential in predicting the transport properties of such functional materials, which may find the possibility of their experimental synthesis for future applications in thermoelectric technologies.