Journal Articles

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    Complementary effect of co-doping aliovalent elements Bi and Sb in self-compensated SnTe-based thermoelectric materials
    (Royal Society of Chemistry, 2021) Kihoi, S.K.; Shenoy, U.S.; Bhat, D.K.; Lee, H.S.
    Research on Pb-free thermoelectric materials as a potential eco-friendly and solid-state source of energy has continuously advanced over time, with SnTe-based materials having shown utmost promising properties owing to their tunable electronic structure and scalable thermal conductivity. In this study, we self-compensate Sn to reduce inherent Sn vacancies, and further tune the carrier concentration by doping with Bi. Sb is further alloyed to incorporate nanostructures that significantly reduce the thermal conductivity. Multiple aliovalent dopants result in a continually decreased carrier concentration and subsequent significantly decreased electrical conductivity. The Seebeck values are seen to increase with temperature, where a maximum value of ?171 ?V K?1is reported with a maximum power factor of ?22.7 ?W cm?1K?2. We show through first principles DFT calculations the synergistic effect of Bi and Sb to introduce resonance states and an additional valence band convergence effect with increasing Sb that contribute to improved electronic properties. A decreased phonon frequency with co-doping is also reported. A maximumZTof ?0.8 at 823 K is reported in the Sn0.90Bi0.03Sb0.10Te composition, showing good potential in Sb co-doped SnTe-based materials. © The Royal Society of Chemistry 2021.
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    Tailoring the Thermoelectric Performance of the Layered Topological Insulator SnSb2Te4 through Bi Positional Doping at the Sn and Sb Cation Sites
    (American Chemical Society, 2023) Kihoi, S.K.; Shenoy, U.S.; Kahiu, J.N.; Kim, H.; Bhat, D.K.; Lee, H.S.
    Ongoing research and development focus on emerging thermoelectric materials with enhanced performance, continually making the possibility of waste heat recovery a reality. In this work, we engineer the thermoelectric properties of the layered SnSb2Te4 topological insulators. To date, there is little research reporting on these materials as potential state-of-the-art thermoelectric materials. Thus, there is a need to formulate effective strategies to realize this potential. Since these materials are known to have intrinsically low lattice thermal conductivity, we shift our attention to improving the electrical transport properties. For the first time, positional Bi doping at both the Sn and Sb cation sites is adopted. The aliovalent and isovalent nature of Bi at these sites, respectively, is shown to cause significant improvements in the performance of these layered materials. The electronic band structure of the pure and doped samples, where we considered various occupancies, is studied whereby we reveal the occurrence of band convergence and resonant levels resulting in a high power factor of ∼10.8 μW cm-1 K-2 at 623 K. Overall, a high ZT of ∼0.46 at a relatively lower temperature of 673 K is recorded. The potential of these materials for thermoelectric applications is shown, especially in the case of Bi doping at the Sn cation site. Continued efforts to enhance the thermoelectric performance of these topological insulators are needed for them to gain a substantial competitive edge in comparison to other state-of-the-art thermoelectric materials. © 2023 American Chemical Society.