This work presents advancements in dispenser-printed thick film thermoelectric materials for the fabrication of planar and printable thermoelectric energy generators. The thermoelectric properties of the printed thermoelectric materials were measured as a function of temperature. The maximum dimensionless figures of merit (ZTs) at 302 K for the n-type Bi 2 Te 3-epoxy composite and the p-type Sb 2 Te 3-epoxy composite are 0.18 and 0.19, respectively. A 50-couple prototype with 5 mm × 640 μm × 90 μm printed element dimensions was fabricated on a polyimide substrate with evaporated metal contacts. The prototype device produced a power output of 10.5 μW at 61.3 μA and 171.6 mV for a temperature difference of 20 K resulting in a device areal power density of 75 μW cm −2 .

The first observation of a pressure-induced metallization accompanied by the spontaneous collapse of magnetic ordering is reported. This isostructural concurrence is observed in the layered antiferromagnetic insulator Nih. Electrical transport, x-ray-diffraction, and ,29 I Mossbauer studies were carried out in diamond-anvil cells. The evidence points to a mechanism by which the originally filled 5p-iodide band shifts and overlaps with the partially filled nickel-3d states. The formation of a hybridized conduction band at P > 19 GPa results in the onset of a diamagnetic metallic ground state.

This paper reports on an integrated energy harvesting prototype that consists of dispenser-printed thermoelectric energy harvesting and electrochemical energy storage devices. Parallel-connected thermoelectric devices with low internal resistances were designed, fabricated and characterized. The use of a commercially available dc-to-dc converter was explored to step-up a 27.1 mV input voltage from a printed thermoelectric device to a regulated 2.34 V output at a maximum of 34% conversion efficiency. The regulated power succeeds in charging dispenser-printed, zinc-based micro-batteries with charging efficiencies of up to 67%. The prototype presented in this work demonstrates the feasibility of deploying a printable, cost-effective and perpetual power solution for practical wireless sensor network applications.