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Textured bulk ceramics of the layer-structured homologous compound (ZnO) 5 In 2 O 3 were fabricated by the reactive templated grain growth (RTGG) technique and the thermoelectric properties evaluated. Plate-like ZnSO 4 ?3Zn(OH) 2 particles were mixed with In 2 O 3 powders and the mixture was tape cast to form a sheet, such that the ZnSO 4 ?3Zn(OH) 2 platelets were aligned parallel to the sheet surface; the sheets were then sintered to form a single phase of (ZnO) 5 In 2 O 3 with the c-axis perpendicular to the sheet surface. The electrical conductivity, s, was found to be highly anisotropic in the textured specimen; that is, s (in the ab-plane)ws (along the c-axis). The textured specimen shows a porous microstructure and exhibits lower thermal conductivity than a dense ceramic specimen with random orientation. As a result, the thermoelectric figure of merit of the textured (ZnO) 5 In 2 O 3 specimen is nearly three times as large as that of the randomly oriented specimen.

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