DOI: 10.1557/mrs2008.73. Thermoelectrics: Direct Solar Thermal Energy Conversion

Thermoelectrics: Direct Solar Thermal Energy Conversion

10.1557/mrs2008.73

Crossref journal-article

Springer Science and Business Media LLC

MRS Bulletin (297)

Abstract

The field of thermoelectricity began in the early 1800s with the discovery of the thermoelectric effect by Thomas Seebeck. Seebeck found that, when the junctions of two dissimilar materials are held at different temperatures (ΔT), a voltage (V) is generated that is proportional to ΔT. The proportionality constant is the Seebeck coeffcient or thermopower: α = −δV/ΔT. When the circuit is closed, this couple allows for direct conversion of thermal energy (heat) to electrical energy. The conversion effciency, ηTE, is related to a quantity called the fgure of merit, ZT, that is determined by three main material parameters: the thermopower α, the electrical resistivity ρ, and the thermal conductivity κ.

Bibliography

Tritt, T. M., BÃ¶ttner, H., & Chen, L. (2008). Thermoelectrics: Direct Solar Thermal Energy Conversion. MRS Bulletin, 33(4), 366â368.

Authors 3

Terry M. Tritt (first)
Harald Böttner (additional)
Lidong Chen (additional)

References 6 Referenced 325

{'key': 'S0883769400004851_ref002', 'volume-title': 'Semiconductor Thermoelements and Thermoelectric Cooling', 'author': 'Ioffe', 'year': '1957'} / Semiconductor Thermoelements and Thermoelectric Cooling by Ioffe (1957)
10.1557/mrs2006.49
{'key': 'S0883769400004851_ref001', 'first-page': '265', 'volume-title': 'Abh. K. Akad. Wiss.', 'author': 'Seebeck', 'year': '1823'} / Abh. K. Akad. Wiss. by Seebeck (1823)
10.1088/0508-3443/5/11/303
10.1557/mrs2006.44
10.1016/j.solener.2004.08.003

Dates

Type	When
Created	14 years, 6 months ago (Feb. 2, 2011, 7:28 a.m.)
Deposited	4 years, 6 months ago (Feb. 24, 2021, 4:12 p.m.)
Indexed	1 day, 3 hours ago (Aug. 26, 2025, 2:56 a.m.)
Issued	17 years, 4 months ago (April 1, 2008)
Published	17 years, 4 months ago (April 1, 2008)
Published Online	14 years, 6 months ago (Jan. 31, 2011)
Published Print	17 years, 4 months ago (April 1, 2008)

Funders 0

None

BibTeX

@article{Tritt_2008, title={Thermoelectrics: Direct Solar Thermal Energy Conversion}, volume={33}, ISSN={1938-1425}, url={http://dx.doi.org/10.1557/mrs2008.73}, DOI={10.1557/mrs2008.73}, number={4}, journal={MRS Bulletin}, publisher={Springer Science and Business Media LLC}, author={Tritt, Terry M. and Böttner, Harald and Chen, Lidong}, year={2008}, month=apr, pages={366–368} }

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