Measurement of the thermoelectric power of very small samples at ambient and high pressures

Abstract

There is currently much interest in the thermoelectric properties of materials. A method for measuring the thermoelectric power of small single-crystal or polycrystalline samples is described. For high-pressure measurements, the small samples are loaded into a diamond anvil cell and compressed. An infrared laser system is used to induce a temperature gradient in the sample. The thermoelectric power is measured with a pair of small thermocouples contacting the sample. Reported here is the thermoelectric power of Ni and the previously reported intermetallic compound CePd3 up to 10 GPa. Other standards measured by this method included: Bi, Yb, and CeSn3. © 1999 American Institute of Physics.