SCHEDULED MAINTENANCE
Enhancing the thermoelectric performance of Cu1.8S by Sb/Sn co-doping and incorporating multiscale defects to scatter heat-carrying phonons†
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Abstract
Cu-based chalcogenides have attracted increasing attention as a potential thermoelectric material due to their unique structural features, high element abundance, and low toxicity. In this paper, a series of Cu1.8SbxSnyS compositions (0.01 < x < 0.04, 0.015 < y < 0.045) were prepared by a simple method combining mechanical alloying (MA) and spark plasma sintering (SPS). The results demonstrate that Sb/Sn co-doping can optimize the hole concentration and substantially improve the dimensionless figure of merit (ZT) of copper–sulfide Cu1.8S. The highest ZT, up to 1.2 at 773 K, was realized for the Cu1.8Sb0.02Sn0.03S sample and maintained a high power factor of 975 μW m−1 K−2. The reduction in thermal conductivity was linked to the heterogeneous phase of Cu12Sb4S13 and Cu4SnS4. Remarkably, after four testing cycles, the variation in ZT was less than 2%, indicating a good stability of the Sb/Sn co-doped Cu1.8S materials.
- This article is part of the themed collection: 2019 Journal of Materials Chemistry C HOT Papers
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