Abstract
Antimony telluride (Sb2Te3) thin films were deposited on silicon substrates at room temperature (300 K) by radio frequency magnetron sputtering method. The effects of annealing in N2 atmosphere on their thermoelectric properties were investigated. The microstructure and composition of these films were characterized using scanning electron microscopy, energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy and X-ray diffraction, respectively. The electrical transport properties of the thin films, in terms of electrical conductivity and Seebeck coefficient were determined at room temperature. The carrier concentration and mobility were calculated from the Hall coefficient measurement. Both of the Seebeck coefficient and Hall coefficient measurement showed that the prepared Sb2Te3 thin films were p-type semiconductor materials. By optimizing the annealing temperature, the power factor achieved a maximum value of 18.02 μW cm−1 K−2 when the annealing temperature was increased to 523 K for 6 h with a maximum electrical conductivity (1.17 × 103 S/cm) and moderate Seebeck coefficient (123.9 μV/K).
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Acknowledgments
This research was supported by Shanghai Science and Technology Funds (10520710400, 10PJ1403800, 11DZ1111200), Yunnan Provincial Science and Technology Department (2010AD003), National Natural Science Foundation of China (21103104, 61204129), Innovation Foundation of Shanghai University and the Special Fund for Selection and Cultivation Excellent Youth in the University of Shanghai city.
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Fang, B., Zeng, Z., Yan, X. et al. Effects of annealing on thermoelectric properties of Sb2Te3 thin films prepared by radio frequency magnetron sputtering. J Mater Sci: Mater Electron 24, 1105–1111 (2013). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10854-012-0888-1
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10854-012-0888-1