Fully 3D Printed Tin Selenide (SnSe) Thermoelectric Generators with Alternating -Type and Type Legs.

Tin selenide (SnSe) has attracted much attention in the field of thermoelectrics since the discovery of the record figure of merit () of 2.6 ± 0.3. While there have been many publications on type SnSe, to manufacture efficient SnSe thermoelectric generators, antype is also required. Publications on type SnSe, however, are limited. This paper reports a pseudo-3D-printing technique to fabricate bulk type SnSe elements, by utilizing Bi as a dopant. Various Bi doping levels are investigated and characterized over a wide range of temperatures and through multiple thermal cycles. Stable type SnSe elements are then combined with printed type SnSe elements to fabricate a fully printed alternating and type thermoelectric generator, which is shown to produce 145 μW at 774 K.