Thermoelectrics refers to the study and use of the thermoelectric effect, a phenomenon where a temperature difference within certain materials can be directly converted to electric voltage and vice versa. This technology is encapsulated in thermoelectric devices that function either as thermoelectric generators (TEGs) or thermoelectric coolers (TECs). TEGs generate electricity from heat differentials, commonly used in remote areas, space probes, and applications where waste heat can be converted into useful power. TECs, on the other hand, use electricity to create a temperature difference, effectively cooling or heating an environment. The appeal of thermoelectric materials lies in their ability to harness energy that would otherwise be lost and their utility in applications where conventional refrigerants or generators are impractical due to size, noise, or moving parts.
Thermoelectric materials, crucial for converting thermal to electrical energy and reducing waste, have broadened their utility beyond heat recovery to catalysis, driven by natural and…
Scientists have created unique Slater-Pauling Heusler materials with semiconductor properties, offering significant potential in thermoelectric applications. Their research reveals these materials’ unique electron redistribution and…
Thermoelectric materials, which can convert heat directly into electrical energy and vice versa, are garnering attention for their technological potential. Researchers at TU Wien explored…
Penn State researchers have created a thermoelectric cooler that significantly improves cooling power and efficiency for future high-power electronics. The device uses half-Heusler alloys and…
Revealing the atomic mechanism behind thermoelectric heat transport. The Science Thermoelectric devices turn thermal energy into electricity by creating a voltage from the temperature differential…
Harvesting energy from the temperature difference between photovoltaic cell, surrounding air leads to a viable, renewable source of electricity at night. About 750 million people…
Purified tin selenide has extraordinarily high thermoelectric performance. Perseverance, NASA’s 2020 Mars rover, is powered by something very desirable here on Earth: a thermoelectric device,…
The landing of NASA’s Perseverance rover was another leap forward not only for space exploration but also for the technology that’s powering the craft on…
What if you could run your air conditioner not on conventional electricity, but on the sun’s heat during a warm summer’s day? With advancements in…
Researchers from the University of Houston have discovered a new high-efficiency thermoelectric material using a combination of magnesium, silver, and a small amount of nickel….
In a newly published study, EPFL scientists have for the first time predicted and experimentally verified the existence of the Magnetic Seebeck Effect. EPFL scientists…
Researchers from Monash University have developed a liquid-based thermocell that could harvest waste heat and convert it into electricity with no carbon emissions. Harvesting waste…
In search of better thermoelectric materials, a team of physicists turned to a material NASA engineers first used roughly 40 years ago for spacecraft design,…