Recent Strategies for Improving Thermoelectric Efficiency of Bi2Te3-Based Thin Films

Abstract

This chapter provides a concise summary of recent strategies for enhancing the thermoelectric (TE) efficiency of Bi2Te3-based thin films. In the introduction, a concise overview of thermoelectricity, its advantages over other technologies, its market value, and its potential future applications will be presented. Next, the preparation methods for Bi2Te3-based thin films will be described under the heading of thin film preparation methods. Then, contemporary strategies for enhancing the TE characterizations of Bi2Te3-based thin films will be discussed. Various strategies, such as the thin film fabrication methods and post-thermal annealing dependent TE properties of Bi2Te3-based thin films, have been discussed. The thin films prepared via vacuum techniques followed by thermal annealing showed high thermoelectric efficiency.