Nanobinders advance screen-printed flexible thermoelectrics

• 成果类型: Article
• 署名作者: Chen, Wenyi; Shi, Xiao-Lei; Li, Meng; Liu, Ting; Mao, Yuanqing; Liu, Qingyi; Dargusch, Matthew; Zou, Jin; Lu, Gao Qing (Max); Chen, Zhi-Gang
• 署名单位: Queensland University of Technology (QUT); University of Queensland; University of Queensland
• 刊物名称: SCIENCE
• ISSN/ISSBN: 0036-11393
• DOI: 10.1126/science.ads5868
• 发表日期: 2024-12-01
• 页码: 1265-1271
• 关键词: total-energy calculations; ultrasoft pseudopotentials; performance; generator; film; TRANSITION; paper

摘要

Limited flexibility, complex manufacturing processes, high costs, and insufficient performance are major factors restricting the scalability and commercialization of flexible inorganic thermoelectrics for wearable electronics and other high-end cooling applications. We developed an innovative, cost-effective technology that integrates solvothermal, screen-printing, and sintering techniques to produce an inorganic flexible thermoelectric film. Our printable film, comprising Bi2Te3-based nanoplates as highly orientated grains and Te nanorods as nanobinders, shows excellent thermoelectric performance for printable films, good flexibility, large-scale manufacturability, and low cost. We constructed a flexible thermoelectric device assembled by printable n-type Bi2Te3-based and p-type Bi0.4Sb1.6Te3 films, which achieved a normalized power density of >3 mu W cm(-2) K-2, ranking among the highest in screen-printed devices. Moreover, this technology can be extended to other inorganic thermoelectric film systems, such as Ag2Se, showing broad applicability.