Molecular Scale Chalcogenide Nanowires for Thermoelectric Conversion

PbTe and Bi2Te3 are the best candidates for thermoelectric conversion at temperature close to room temperature and 500 K, respectively. Herein, we developed a facile solution phase method for the synthesis of ultrathin PbTe and Bi2Te3 nanowires with diameters of about or less than 10 nm using the ultrathin Te nanowires as the in-situ templates. The phase transfer from Te to PbTe or Bi2Te3 is accomplished through the injection of Pb and Bi precursor solution to the Te nanowire solution.By fabricating themoelectric devices using these nanowires with diameters less than 10 nm, reduced thermal conductivity and enhanced Seebeck coefficient have been observed to improve the thermoelectric figure of merits.