Heat Transfer in Thermoelectric Materials and Devices

Abstract

Solidstate thermoelectric devices are currently used in applications ranging from thermocouple sensors to power generators in space missions, to portable airconditioners and refrigerators. With the everrising demand throughout the world for energy consumption and CO2 reduction, thermoelectric energy conversion has been receiving intensified attention as a potential candidate for wasteheat harvesting as well as for power generation from renewable sources. Efficient thermoelectric energy conversion critically depends on the performance of thermoelectric materials and devices. In this review, we discuss heat transfer in thermoelectric materials and devices, especially phonon engineering to reduce the lattice thermal conductivity of thermoelectric materials, which requires a fundamental understanding of nanoscale heat conduction physics.