The effect of (00l) crystal plane orientation on the thermoelectric properties of Bi2Te3 thin film

Highly (00l00l)-oriented pure Bi2Te3 films with in-plane layered grown columnar nanostructure have been fabricated by a simple magnetron co-sputtering method. Compared with ordinary Bi2Te3 film and bulk materials, the electrical conductivity and Seebeck coefficient of such films have been greatly increased simultaneously due to raised carrier mobility and electron scattering parameter, while the thermal conductivity has been decreased due to phonon scattering by grain boundaries between columnar grains and interfaces between each layers. The power factor has reached as large as 33.7 μW cm−1 K−2, and the out-of-plane thermal conductivity is reduced to 0.86 W m−1 K−1. Our results confirm that tailoring nanoscale structures inside thermoelectric films effectively enhances their performances.

► Highly (00l00l)-oriented Bi2Te3 films with layered grown columnar nanostructure have been realized by magnetron co-sputtering.
► The electrical conductivity and Seebeck coefficient are simultaneously increased greatly while the thermal conductivity is decreased.
► Tailoring nanostructures inside thermoelectric films effectively enhances their performances.