Superlattice quantum well material
First Claim
1. A thermoelectric element for use in a thermoelectric device comprised of:
- a plurality of alternating layers of at least two different semiconducting materials, the first of said two materials, defining a barrier material and the second of said two materials defining a conducting material, said alternating materials defining band gaps,said barrier material and said conducting material being strained having the same crystalline structure,said barrier material having a band gap higher than the band gap of said conducting material,said conducting material being doped to create conducting properties,said layer arrangement of said at least two different materials creating a superlattice and quantum wells within said layers of said conducting material.
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Abstract
A thermoelectric element having a very large number of alternating layers of semiconductor material. The alternating layers all have the same crystalline structure. The inventors have demonstrated that materials produced in accordance with this invention provide figures of merit more than six times that of prior art thermoelectric materials. A preferred embodiment is a superlattice of Si, as a barrier material, and SiGe, as a conducting material, both of which have the same cubic structure. Another preferred embodiment is a superlattice of B--C alloys, the layers of which would be different stoichiometric forms of B--C but in all cases the crystalline structure would be alpha 0. In a preferred embodiment the layers are grown under conditions as to cause them to be strained at their operating temperature range in order to improve the thermoelectric properties.
62 Citations
13 Claims
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1. A thermoelectric element for use in a thermoelectric device comprised of:
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a plurality of alternating layers of at least two different semiconducting materials, the first of said two materials, defining a barrier material and the second of said two materials defining a conducting material, said alternating materials defining band gaps, said barrier material and said conducting material being strained having the same crystalline structure, said barrier material having a band gap higher than the band gap of said conducting material, said conducting material being doped to create conducting properties, said layer arrangement of said at least two different materials creating a superlattice and quantum wells within said layers of said conducting material. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13)
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Specification