Abstract
We report on the phase transition behavior and thermoelectric transport properties of Zn-doped Cu₂Se. Cu₂Se is comprised of nontoxic, low-cost and abundant elements, and has been attracting attention because of its very high thermoelectric performance, ZT, at high temperatures. Many studies have reported enhanced ZT in impurity doped Cu₂Se, however,..... More

Abstract
In this study, we report how Cu doping can modify the thermoelectric performance of p-type Bi_0.5Sb_1.5Te3 and Bi_0.4Sb_1.6Te3 thermoelectric alloys, including their electronic and thermal transport properties. For electronic transport, the power factors of both Bi_0.5Sb_1.5Te3 and Bi0.4Sb1.6Te3 compositions were increased by Cu doping. The origins of the enhanced power..... More

Abstract
Layered post transition metal chalcogenides such as SnSe, SnSe₂, In₂Se₃, and In₄Se₃ have attracted attention as promising thermoelectric materials due to their intrinsically low lattice thermal conductivities. Recently, n-type indium selenide (InSe) based materials have also been suggested as good candidates for thermoelectric materials by optimizing their electrical properties, i.e.,..... More

Abstract
Tetrahedrite (C₁₂Sb₄S₁₃) has attracted attention as a p-type thermoeletric material with very low thermal conductivity induced by the anharmonic oscillation of Cu due to the lone-pair electrons of Sb. Many studies have been conducted to improve its thermoelectric performance by partially substituting the transition elements for the Cu sites. In..... More

Abstract
We report the thermoelectric transport properties of n-type Bi₂Te_2.7Se_0.3 compounds prepared by oxide-reduction process. The oxide-reduction process is a recently developed method that can synthesize Bi2Te3-based compounds using only oxide starting materials, which is advantageous in terms of the diversity of the starting materials and cost efficiency. In this study,..... More

Abstract
Tetrahedrite has low lattice thermal conductivity because of the lone-pair electrons of Sb, which cause the Cu atoms to vibrate at a low frequency and high amplitude. The synthesis of tetrahedrite compounds by conventional melting methods requires a long-time reaction and annealing. However, a homogeneous and solid-state synthesis can be..... More

Abstract
Partially double-filled skutterudites were prepared via encapsulated melting and hot pressing processes. The skutterudite phase was successfully synthesized through partial double filling of La/Yb and substitution of Co. A small quantity of secondary phase (marcasite FeSb₂) was formed, but its formation was suppressed by increasing Co charge compensation. The marcasite..... More

Abstract
Herein we report the effect of Cu/In doping on the electronic and thermal transport properties of Bi-Sb-Te thermoelectric alloys. To closely examine the role of each doping element when incorporated in a Bi_0.4Sb_1.6Te₃ alloy, different groups of samples were prepared and characterized, including undoped Bi_0.4Sb_1.6Te₃, In single-doped samples and In..... More

Abstract
We report the effect of interface control using reduced graphene oxide (RGO) on the thermoelectric transport properties of Bi₂Te_2.7Se_0.3 (BTS)-RGO composites. The interface-controlled BTS-RGO composites were prepared by the consolidation of BTS-RGO hybrid powders using spark plasma sintering (SPS). The RGO-hybridization reduced the grain size in the BTS-RGO composites because..... More

Abstract
p-Type (La1−zNdz)0.8Fe4−xCoxSb12 skutterudites were prepared by partial double filling with La/Nd and charge compensation by substituting Co for Fe. The skutterudite phase was successfully synthesized using encapsulated melting, quenching, annealing and hot-pressing processes, but a small amount of the marcasite phase was identified. Partial filling within the filling fraction limit..... More

Abstract
Tetrahedrite Cu12Sb4S13 has low lattice thermal conductivity because of the lone-pair electrons of Sb, which cause the Cu atoms to vibrate at a low frequency and high amplitude. When the Cu atoms of Cu12Sb4S13 are partially substituted with a transition metal, changes in the Cu vibrations can intensify phonon scattering,..... More

Abstract
Higher manganese silicides (HMSs) MnSi1.74-1.75:Gem (m = 0.01–0.04) were prepared by solid-state reaction and hot pressing. The major phases of the HMSs were Mn27Si47 or Mn4Si7, and a small quantity of Si remained, but the intermetallic compound MnSi was not formed. The lattice constant increased with the substitution of Ge..... More

Abstract
P-type Ce/Yb-filled skutterudites were synthesized, and their charge transport and thermoelectric properties were investigated with partial double filling and charge compensation. In the case of (Ce1-zYbz)0.8Fe4Sb12 without Co substitution, the marcasite (FeSb2) phase formed alongside the skutterudite phase, but the generation of the marcasite phase was inhibited by increasing Co..... More

Abstract
Partially La/Pr-double-filled and Co-substituted (La_1−zPr_z)_0.8Fe_4−xCo_xSb₁₂ skutterudites were synthesized by encapsulated melting and vacuum hot pressing. (La,Pr)Sb₂ phases were not formed because the partial filling did not exceed the filling fraction limit, and the amount of secondary phase FeSb₂ also decreased as the Co content increased. Electrical conductivity decreased with increasing..... More

Abstract
Ge-doped higher manganese silicides (HMSs) MnSi_1.72–1.73:Ge_m (m = 0.01-0.04) were prepared and their thermoelectric properties were studied. HMS powders were synthesized by solid-state reaction of raw material powders (Mn, Si, and Ge) at 1273 K for 6 h in vacuum, and hot-pressed at 1173 K for 2 h under 70..... More

Abstract
Thermoelectric energy conversion has attracted much attention as an efficient and environment-friendly energy technology. Thermoelectric energy conversion performance is directly influenced by the figure of merit (ZT) of the thermoelectric material, however, most known thermoelectric materials with high ZT contain toxic and/or scarce elements. Herein, we report the thermoelectric properties..... More

Abstract
Iodine-doped n-type Bi_2-xSb_xTe_3-ySe_y:I_m (x = 0.1–0.2, y = 0.15–0.6, and m = 0.0025–0.005) quaternary solid solutions were prepared by encapsulated melting (EM) and hot pressing (HP). The lattice constants of the resulting materials decreased with increasing Sb and Se contents, whereas the amount of I dopant was too small to..... More

Abstract
We report the effect of interface control using multiwalled carbon nanotubes (MWCNT) on thermoelectric properties of TiO₂. By consolidating TiO₂ nanoparticles with MWCNT (0.5, 1, 2, 4, and 8 wt%) using spark plasma sintering, we prepared interface-controlled TiO₂-MWCNT nanocomposites, where TiO₂ grains were surrounded with a MWCNT network. Simultaneous control of..... More

Abstract
Cu₂Se exhibits very low thermal conductivity and the origin is known to be the "liquid-like" behavior of Cu ions around the sub-lattice of Se. Due to its very high ZT, research interest in the thermoelectric properties of this material has been increasing rapidly. However, most studies have used a conventional melting..... More

Abstract
(Ce_1-zNd_z)_yFe_4-xCo_xSb₁₂ skutterudites were prepared by encapsulated melting, annealing, and hot pressing. The formation of a marcasite phase (FeSb₂) was significantly suppressed by partially filling the voids with Ce/Nd and making a Co substitution at the Fe site. Both the Hall and the Seebeck coefficient values were positive, indicating that all..... More

Abstract
We report the effects of interface control using reduced graphene oxide (RGO) on the thermoelectric transport properties of polycrystalline SnSe compounds. Polycrystalline SnSe-RGO composites were prepared by the consolidation of SnSe powder coated with the RGO by hot pressing, and the RGO content was controlled to be 0, 0.2, 0.5..... More

Abstract
Bi_2-xSb_xTe₃ (x = 1.4–1.7) solid solutions were synthesized by mechanical alloying (MA) and consolidated by hot pressing (HP), and their charge transport and thermoelectric properties were examined. The relative densities of the hot-pressed specimens were higher than 96% on average. As the Sb content was increased, the lattice constants decreased,..... More

Abstract
We report the effects of Sb content on the charge transport and power factor of Bi_2-xSb_xTe₃(1.56 ≤χ≤ 1.74) compounds prepared by hot pressing. From the temperature-dependence of the electrical conductivity, it was found that the charge transport in the compounds was predominantly governed by acoustic phonon scattering, and additionally affected..... More

Abstract
Hybrid organic/inorganic composites have recently been investigated in the thermoelectric field in an effort to interdependently manipulate the charge carriers, which are interconnected with electrical and thermal transport. The decoupling of a charge carrier’s roles in the hybrid structures can result in enhanced thermoelectric performance, by only exploiting the high..... More

Abstract
We report the effects of incorporated Cu on the thermoelectric transport properties of Bi_0.42Sb_1.58Te₃ compounds prepared by the hot pressing method. The hole concentration in the compound increased significantly with the increase in the Cu content. The acceptor role of Cu was manifested by Hall measurements and also by the..... More