Nanostructuring of Conventional Thermoelectric Materials

Abstract

In recent years, the performance of conventional thermoelectric materials has been remarkably enhanced through the nontraditional processing technology of nanostructuring. The nanostructuring approach has been shown to be one of the most effective ways to improve the thermoelectric figure merit, as this approach can either reduce the lattice thermal conductivity or enhance the thermoelectric power factor. In this chapter, the emphasis is on nanosturctured conventional bulk thermoelectric materials (thermoelectric nanocomposites) with an enhanced thermoelectric performance. Strategies for high-performance thermoelectric nanocomposites are summarized, after which a few important nanostructuring technologies are presented.