Thermoelectric properties in Mn-doped Bi2Se3

• A thin-film-type thermoelectric module was fabricated with n- and p-type MnxBi2−xSe3.
• The thermoelectric properties were investigated.
• The single thermoelectric module is expected to generate an electric power of 41 μW.

Using n-type and p-type Mn-doped Bi2Se3 single crystals, a thin-film-type thermoelectric (TE) module was fabricated and the TE characteristics were investigated. The Seebeck coefficient at room temperature was about 100 μV K−1 with different sign for both materials. From the Seebeck coefficient and resistivity values, the electric power of our TE module was evaluated to be 90 μW for a single couple at the temperature difference of 10 K. This value is compared to that (∼21 μW) of commercialized TE device. Nevertheless, the actual power was measured to be quite small around 0.74 μW, which is much higher than other homemade TE power level. This small power is attributed to the high electrical contact resistance between the TE material and the heat source and sink. Assuming the contact resistance level ∼0.1 Ω similar to that of commercialized TE devices, the electric power should be about 41 μW, which is almost 2 times higher than that in commercialized TE devices. These results propose that the Mn-doped Bi2Se3 system is another promising TE material, which can be replaced with the commercialized Bi2Te3 system.