With good electrical properties and an inherently complex crystal structure, Cu2-xSe is a potential "phonon glass electron crystal" thermoelectric material that has previously not attracted much interest. In this st...With good electrical properties and an inherently complex crystal structure, Cu2-xSe is a potential "phonon glass electron crystal" thermoelectric material that has previously not attracted much interest. In this study, Cu2-xSe (0 ≤ x ≤0.25) compounds were synthesized by a melting-quenching method, and then sintered by spark plasma sintering to obtain bulk material. The effect of Cu content on the phase transition and thermoelectric properties of Cu2-xSe were investigated in the temperature range of 300 K-750 K. The results of X-ray diffraction at room temperature show that Cu2-xSe compounds possess a cubic structure with a space group of Fm3m (#225) when 0.15 〈 x ≤ 0.25, whereas they adopt a composite of monoclinic and cubic phases when 0 ≤x ≤ 0.15. The thermoelectric property measurements show that with increasing Cu content, the electrical conductivity decreases, the Seebeck coefficient increases and the thermal conductivity decreases. Due to the relatively good power factor and low thermal conductivity, the nearly stoichiometric Cu2Se compound achieves the highest ZT of 0.38 at 750 K. It is expected that the thermoelectric performance can be further optimized by doping appropriate elements and/or via a nanostructuring approach.展开更多
Coupling of a phase transition to electron and phonon transports provides extra degree of freedom to improve the thermoelectric performance, while the pertinent experimental and theoretical studies are still rare. Par...Coupling of a phase transition to electron and phonon transports provides extra degree of freedom to improve the thermoelectric performance, while the pertinent experimental and theoretical studies are still rare. Particularly,the impaction of chemical compositions and phase transition characters on the abnormal thermoelectric properties across phase transitions are largely unclear. Herein, by varying the Cu content x from 1.75 to 2.10, we systemically investigate the crystal structural evolution, phase transition features, and especially the thermoelectric properties during the phase transition for Cu_(x)Se. It is found that the addition of over-stoichiometry Cu in Cu_(x)Se could alter the phase transition characters and suppress the formation of Cu vacancies. The critical scatterings of phonons and electrons during phase transitions strongly enhance the Seebeck coefficient and diminish the thermal conductivity, leading to an ultrahigh dimensionless thermoelectric figure of merit of ~1.38 at 397 K in Cu_(2.10)Se.With the decreasing Cu content, the critical electron and phonon scattering behaviors are mitigated, and the corresponding thermoelectric performances are reduced. This work offers inspirations for understanding and tuning the thermoelectric transport properties during phase transitions.展开更多
The doping of the spinel ferrites with selective cations usually improves the properties of the parent ferrite.The effect of Co^(2+)/Gd^(3+)co-substitution on the microstructure,optical,and magnetic properties of Cu1-...The doping of the spinel ferrites with selective cations usually improves the properties of the parent ferrite.The effect of Co^(2+)/Gd^(3+)co-substitution on the microstructure,optical,and magnetic properties of Cu1-xCoxFe2-xGdxO4 prepared by the citrate-nitrate auto-combustion synthesis was investigated.Characterization of the samples was performed with powder X-ray diffraction(XRD),Raman and Fouriertransform infrared(FTIR)spectroscopy,field-emission scanning electron microscopy,X-ray energydispersive spectroscopy,UV-Vis spectroscopy,and a vibrating sample magnetometer.The results of XRD,Raman,and FTIR analysis show a gradual structural phase transition from a tetragonal(I41/amd)structure to a cubic(Fd3m)structure.The bandgap energy of the studied samples is in a range of 1.57-1.75 eV with a minimum in sample x=0.06 and then increases.Magnetic investigations show that the presence of Co^(2+)/Gd^(3+)cations in an octahedral site of the copper ferrite structure could increase saturation magnetization and coercive field from 567.9 Oe and 23.62 emu/g to 929.4 Oe and 28.27 emu/g,respectively.展开更多
Over the past few years, Cu-based materials have been intensively studied focusing on their structural and thermoelectric properties. In this work, copper sulphide powders were synthesized by the sol-gel method. The c...Over the past few years, Cu-based materials have been intensively studied focusing on their structural and thermoelectric properties. In this work, copper sulphide powders were synthesized by the sol-gel method. The chemical composition and the morphological properties of the obtained samples were analyzed by X-ray diffraction, differential thermal analysis, and scanning electron microscopy. It is shown that the decomposition from one phase to another can be obtained by annealing. The electrical resistivity and the crystallite size were found to be strongly affected by the phase transition. Thermoelectric analyses showed that the digenite phase exhibits the highest power factor at room temperature. The Seebeck coefficient of the compound Cu1.8S shows a pronounced peak at the γ-β transition temperature. This behavior was statistically explained in terms of a dramatic increase in the disorder in the atoms-carriers ensemble.展开更多
By virtue of the excellent plasticity and tunable transport properties,Ag_(2)S-based materials demonstrate an intriguing prospect for flexible or hetero-shaped thermoelectric applications.Among them,Ag_(2)S_(1-x)Te_(x...By virtue of the excellent plasticity and tunable transport properties,Ag_(2)S-based materials demonstrate an intriguing prospect for flexible or hetero-shaped thermoelectric applications.Among them,Ag_(2)S_(1-x)Te_(x)exhibits rich and interesting variations in crystal structure,mechanical and thermoelectric transport properties.However,Te alloying obviously introduces extremely large order-disorder distributions of cations and anions,leading to quite complicated crystal structures and thermoelectric properties.Detailed composition-structure-performance correlation of Ag_(2)S_(1-x)Te_(x)still remains to be established.In this work,we designed and prepared a series of Ag_(2)S_(1-x)Te_(x)(x=0-0.3)materials with low Te content.We discovered that the monoclinic-to-cubic phase transition occurs around x=0.16 at room temperature.Te alloying plays a similar role as heating in facilitating this monoclinic-to-cubic phase transition,which is analyzed based on the thermodynamic principles.Compared with the monoclinic counterparts,the cubic-structured phases are more ductile and softer in mechanical properties.In addition,the cubic phases show a degenerately semiconducting behavior with higher thermoelectric performance.A maximum zT=0.8 at 600 K and bending strain larger than 20% at room temperature were obtained in Ag_(2)S_(0.7)Te_(0.3).This work provides a useful guidance for designing Ag_(2)S-based alloys with enhanced plasticity and high thermoelectric performance.展开更多
Molecular dynamics (MD) computer simulations have been carried out to study the structures, properties and crystal nucleation of nanoparticles with 453 Cu atoms. Structure information was analyzed from the MD simula...Molecular dynamics (MD) computer simulations have been carried out to study the structures, properties and crystal nucleation of nanoparticles with 453 Cu atoms. Structure information was analyzed from the MD simulations, while properties of nanoparticles of Cu453, such as melting point, freezing temperature, heat capacity and mo- lar volumes, have been estimated. The face center cubic (FCC) phase and icosahedron (Ih) phase were observed during the quenching process, and nucleation rates of crystallization to FCC crystal of Cu453 at temperatures of 650, 700, 750, and 800 K were analyzed. Both classical nucleation theory (CNT) and diffuse interface theory (DIT) were used to interpret our observed nucleation rates. The free energy and diffuse interface thickness between the liquid and the FCC crystal phases were estimated by the CNT and DIT respectively, and the results show that the DIT does not work properly to the system.展开更多
基金Project supported by the National Basic Research Program of China (Grant No. 2007CB607501)the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant Nos. 50731006 and 50672118) along with 111 Project (Grant No. B07040)
文摘With good electrical properties and an inherently complex crystal structure, Cu2-xSe is a potential "phonon glass electron crystal" thermoelectric material that has previously not attracted much interest. In this study, Cu2-xSe (0 ≤ x ≤0.25) compounds were synthesized by a melting-quenching method, and then sintered by spark plasma sintering to obtain bulk material. The effect of Cu content on the phase transition and thermoelectric properties of Cu2-xSe were investigated in the temperature range of 300 K-750 K. The results of X-ray diffraction at room temperature show that Cu2-xSe compounds possess a cubic structure with a space group of Fm3m (#225) when 0.15 〈 x ≤ 0.25, whereas they adopt a composite of monoclinic and cubic phases when 0 ≤x ≤ 0.15. The thermoelectric property measurements show that with increasing Cu content, the electrical conductivity decreases, the Seebeck coefficient increases and the thermal conductivity decreases. Due to the relatively good power factor and low thermal conductivity, the nearly stoichiometric Cu2Se compound achieves the highest ZT of 0.38 at 750 K. It is expected that the thermoelectric performance can be further optimized by doping appropriate elements and/or via a nanostructuring approach.
基金Supported by the National Key Research and Development Program of China (Grant No. 2018YFB0703600)the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant Nos. 91963208, 51625205, 51961135106, and 51902199)+2 种基金Shanghai Government (Grant No. 20JC1415100)the CAS-DOE Program of Chinese Academy of Sciences (Grant No. 121631KYSB20180060)the Shanghai Sailing Program (Grant No. 19YF1422800)。
文摘Coupling of a phase transition to electron and phonon transports provides extra degree of freedom to improve the thermoelectric performance, while the pertinent experimental and theoretical studies are still rare. Particularly,the impaction of chemical compositions and phase transition characters on the abnormal thermoelectric properties across phase transitions are largely unclear. Herein, by varying the Cu content x from 1.75 to 2.10, we systemically investigate the crystal structural evolution, phase transition features, and especially the thermoelectric properties during the phase transition for Cu_(x)Se. It is found that the addition of over-stoichiometry Cu in Cu_(x)Se could alter the phase transition characters and suppress the formation of Cu vacancies. The critical scatterings of phonons and electrons during phase transitions strongly enhance the Seebeck coefficient and diminish the thermal conductivity, leading to an ultrahigh dimensionless thermoelectric figure of merit of ~1.38 at 397 K in Cu_(2.10)Se.With the decreasing Cu content, the critical electron and phonon scattering behaviors are mitigated, and the corresponding thermoelectric performances are reduced. This work offers inspirations for understanding and tuning the thermoelectric transport properties during phase transitions.
文摘The doping of the spinel ferrites with selective cations usually improves the properties of the parent ferrite.The effect of Co^(2+)/Gd^(3+)co-substitution on the microstructure,optical,and magnetic properties of Cu1-xCoxFe2-xGdxO4 prepared by the citrate-nitrate auto-combustion synthesis was investigated.Characterization of the samples was performed with powder X-ray diffraction(XRD),Raman and Fouriertransform infrared(FTIR)spectroscopy,field-emission scanning electron microscopy,X-ray energydispersive spectroscopy,UV-Vis spectroscopy,and a vibrating sample magnetometer.The results of XRD,Raman,and FTIR analysis show a gradual structural phase transition from a tetragonal(I41/amd)structure to a cubic(Fd3m)structure.The bandgap energy of the studied samples is in a range of 1.57-1.75 eV with a minimum in sample x=0.06 and then increases.Magnetic investigations show that the presence of Co^(2+)/Gd^(3+)cations in an octahedral site of the copper ferrite structure could increase saturation magnetization and coercive field from 567.9 Oe and 23.62 emu/g to 929.4 Oe and 28.27 emu/g,respectively.
文摘Over the past few years, Cu-based materials have been intensively studied focusing on their structural and thermoelectric properties. In this work, copper sulphide powders were synthesized by the sol-gel method. The chemical composition and the morphological properties of the obtained samples were analyzed by X-ray diffraction, differential thermal analysis, and scanning electron microscopy. It is shown that the decomposition from one phase to another can be obtained by annealing. The electrical resistivity and the crystallite size were found to be strongly affected by the phase transition. Thermoelectric analyses showed that the digenite phase exhibits the highest power factor at room temperature. The Seebeck coefficient of the compound Cu1.8S shows a pronounced peak at the γ-β transition temperature. This behavior was statistically explained in terms of a dramatic increase in the disorder in the atoms-carriers ensemble.
基金This work is supported by the National Key Research and Development Program of China(2018YFB0703600)National Natural Science Foundation of China(91963208,51625205,51961135106,51802333)+2 种基金the CAS-DOE Program of Chinese Academy of Sciences(121631KYSB20180060)the Shanghai Government(20JC1415100)the Swedish Research Council(VR 2018e06030).
文摘By virtue of the excellent plasticity and tunable transport properties,Ag_(2)S-based materials demonstrate an intriguing prospect for flexible or hetero-shaped thermoelectric applications.Among them,Ag_(2)S_(1-x)Te_(x)exhibits rich and interesting variations in crystal structure,mechanical and thermoelectric transport properties.However,Te alloying obviously introduces extremely large order-disorder distributions of cations and anions,leading to quite complicated crystal structures and thermoelectric properties.Detailed composition-structure-performance correlation of Ag_(2)S_(1-x)Te_(x)still remains to be established.In this work,we designed and prepared a series of Ag_(2)S_(1-x)Te_(x)(x=0-0.3)materials with low Te content.We discovered that the monoclinic-to-cubic phase transition occurs around x=0.16 at room temperature.Te alloying plays a similar role as heating in facilitating this monoclinic-to-cubic phase transition,which is analyzed based on the thermodynamic principles.Compared with the monoclinic counterparts,the cubic-structured phases are more ductile and softer in mechanical properties.In addition,the cubic phases show a degenerately semiconducting behavior with higher thermoelectric performance.A maximum zT=0.8 at 600 K and bending strain larger than 20% at room temperature were obtained in Ag_(2)S_(0.7)Te_(0.3).This work provides a useful guidance for designing Ag_(2)S-based alloys with enhanced plasticity and high thermoelectric performance.
文摘Molecular dynamics (MD) computer simulations have been carried out to study the structures, properties and crystal nucleation of nanoparticles with 453 Cu atoms. Structure information was analyzed from the MD simulations, while properties of nanoparticles of Cu453, such as melting point, freezing temperature, heat capacity and mo- lar volumes, have been estimated. The face center cubic (FCC) phase and icosahedron (Ih) phase were observed during the quenching process, and nucleation rates of crystallization to FCC crystal of Cu453 at temperatures of 650, 700, 750, and 800 K were analyzed. Both classical nucleation theory (CNT) and diffuse interface theory (DIT) were used to interpret our observed nucleation rates. The free energy and diffuse interface thickness between the liquid and the FCC crystal phases were estimated by the CNT and DIT respectively, and the results show that the DIT does not work properly to the system.