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Germanium-telluride-based thermoelectrics

Nature Reviews Electrical Engineering volume 1, pages 109–123 (2024)Cite this article

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Abstract

Germanium telluride (GeTe)-based compounds have drawn attention as one of the most promising thermoelectrics for mid-to-high-temperature applications such as heat recovery from automotive exhaust emissions and radioisotope thermoelectric generators. The thermoelectric performance of GeTe-based materials can be improved by general methods such as band engineering and phonon engineering. However, further progress has been made to optimize thermoelectric performance using targeted strategies that take advantage of the structural properties of GeTe. We consider the targeted phase, defect and entropy engineering strategies used to optimize the electrical and thermal properties of GeTe-based materials. We also showcase the potential of GeTe-based materials for practical thermoelectric applications. Finally, we discuss the existing challenges and prospects for GeTe thermoelectrics and their modules in future research.

Key points

  • GeTe thermoelectrics exhibit high thermoelectric performance, which can be further enhanced through targeted methods driven by a deeper understanding of their atomic structure.

  • Phase engineering of GeTe can leverage the high Seebeck coefficient and low lattice thermal conductivity of the near-cubic phase to increase thermoelectric efficiencies.

  • Quantum gaps formed by Ge vacancies in GeTe can decouple carrier and phonon transport, which improves thermoelectric performance.

  • Entropy engineering in GeTe, capable of simultaneously augmenting the power factor and lowering the lattice thermal conductivity, can lead to improved thermoelectric performance in GeTe-based materials.

  • GeTe-based thermoelectric modules have reached an efficiency of more than 13%.

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Fig. 1: The average figure of merit of the mid-to-high-temperature thermoelectrics and the theoretical thermoelectric-conversion efficiency.
Fig. 2: Phase transition of GeTe and its influence on the Seebeck coefficient and lattice thermal conductivity.
Fig. 3: Quantum gap engineering in GeTe-based materials.
Fig. 4: Physical mechanisms of GeTe-based high entropy alloys.
Fig. 5: Working modules of GeTe materials.

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Acknowledgements

This work was supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (grant number 11934007), the Science and Technology Innovation Committee Foundation of Shenzhen (grant number JCYJ20200109141205978) and the Outstanding Talents Training Fund in Shenzhen (grant number 202108). We acknowledge support from the Singapore Ministry of Education via the Academic Research Fund (grant number MOE-T2EP50122-0016).

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  1. Shenzhen Key Laboratory of Thermoelectric Materials, Department of Physics, Southern University of Science and Technology, Shenzhen, China

    Yong Yu & Jiaqing He

  2. Department of Materials Science and Engineering, National University of Singapore, Singapore, Singapore

    Yong Yu & Michel Bosman

  3. Institute for Metallic Materials, Leibniz Institute for Solid State and Materials Research, Dresden, Germany

    Xiao Xu & Kornelius Nielsch

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Y.Y. and X.X. researched data for this article. Y.Y. and X.X. wrote the article. J.H. reviewed and edited the manuscript before submission. Y.Y., X.X. and J.H. contributed substantially to the discussion of content. M.B. and K.N. offered advice on this article.

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Yu, Y., Xu, X., Bosman, M. et al. Germanium-telluride-based thermoelectrics. Nat Rev Electr Eng 1, 109–123 (2024). https://doi.org/10.1038/s44287-023-00013-6

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