Thermoelectric characteristics of Si nanowires transferred onto plastics in air

We propose a simple route to examine the thermoelectric characteristics of Si nanowires (NWs) with infrared (IR) images in air. A device platform is designed to investigate the reliability of the thermoelectric characteristics. The Seebeck coefficients of the Si NWs obtained from all the electrode-couples in the platform are nearly identical at about 140 μV/K, revealing the validity of the simple route. The directly measured Seebeck voltages are carefully compared with the sum of the individual Seebeck voltages, and the comparison is discussed in detail.

Graphical abstractFigure optionsDownload full-size imageDownload as PowerPoint slideHighlights• We propose a simple route to examine the thermoelectric characteristics in air. • The temperature distribution of the device is more clearly expressed. • The validity of our method is confirmed via comparison between Seebeck voltages.