Specific Features of the Formation of Thin Films for SmS-Based Thermoelectric Generators
- PDF / 616,890 Bytes
- 4 Pages / 612 x 792 pts (letter) Page_size
- 50 Downloads / 166 Views
ACE AND THIN FILMS
Specific Features of the Formation of Thin Films for SmS-Based Thermoelectric Generators V. I. Strelova, E. B. Baskakova,*, U. N. Bendrysheva, and V. M. Kanevskiia aShubnikov
Institute of Crystallography, Federal Scientific Research Centre “Crystallography and Photonics,” Russian Academy of Sciences, Moscow, 119333 Russia *e-mail: [email protected] Received March 6, 2018; revised March 28, 2018; accepted April 9, 2018
Abstract—The specific features of magnetron sputtering deposition of thin SmS films for thermoelectric generators that do not require any forced formation of temperature gradient have been investigated. An experimental design of a thermoelectric generator is developed in the form of a set of Ni–SmS–Ni films successively deposited on a Ti substrate. The generation of thermopower in a thin SmS film is demonstrated on an experimental sample. DOI: 10.1134/S1063774519020299
INTRODUCTION The development of modern technologies is inextricably linked with the search for new energy sources, primarily, electric ones. Despite the fact that most of the electric power in the world is produced by classical hydrocarbon power plants, the fraction of alternative power engineering in the total amount of produced electric power has significantly increased recently [1]. Among alternative power supplies, promising ones are thermoelectric generators (TEG), which can directly transform thermal energy into electrical energy [2]. The operation of known TEGs is based on the Seebeck effect, whose essence is as follows: an electromotive force (emf) arises in a closed electric circuit, consisting of successively connected dissimilar conductors with a temperature difference maintained on the contacts between them. The advantages of the Seebeck thermoelectric generation are significantly limited by relatively low efficiency (9–14%) of heat flow transformation into electrical energy and the necessity of forced formation of a temperature gradient. As a result, these devices cannot compete with classical hydrocarbon energy carriers. In this context, the main purpose of our study was to analyze the specific features of the formation of thin samarium monosulfide (SmS) films, which exhibit thermopower effect, for designing thermoelectric generators on their basis that could operate without a forced formation of temperature gradient. EXPERIMENTAL The possibility of generating an electric current in sulfides of rare-earth metals without applying a tem-
perature gradient [3–5] predetermines the elaboration of a new group of materials as a basis for designing an alternative source of renewable electrical energy and developing a promising efficient TEG. The thermovoltaic effect in SmS is due to the specificity of electron band structure of this compound. The defect samarium ions Sm+2, located out of lattice sites (in sulfur sublattice vacancies [6]), provide a high concentration of impurity donor levels (1020–1021 cm‒3). An increase in temperature to a certain value leads to collective excitation of electrons to the con
Data Loading...
