Description
The promising thermoelectric oxide SrTiO3 is limited in its thermoelectric (TE) ability by an intrinsically high thermal conductivity (9–12 Wm−1K−1) at room temperature (RT), resulting in applications exclusive to high temperatures. A thermoelectric (TE) device allows for the recovery of waste heat in both domestic and industrial settings by converting a temperature gradient created between two ends of the device directly into electricity. TE devices consist two semi-conductive materials, n-type and p-type. To gauge the performance of these materials, the figure of merit can be used (ZT=S2 σT/κ) where S is See beck coefficient,σ is the electrical conductivity and κ is the thermal conductivity. Limiting κ is a key focus of TE research and can be achieved via several routes: nanostructuring, doping and nanocompositing. However, nanostructuring in SrTiO3 has been shown to be less effective compared to other TE materials, while doping has led to improvements in σ and κ. Recent research has concentrated on nanocomposites, which combineSrTiO3 with dissimilar materials like graphene or conductive polymers. These produce an interface at which the phonons' mean free path can be disrupted and whilst also inducing quantum effects that may improve the TE properties. In fact, research by Lin et al. has demonstrated that adding graphene to La doped SrTiO3lowers the operating temperature and results in an increase in ZT of about 280% (ZT = 0.42) at RT in comparison to pristine SrTiO3. Therefore, it is anticipated that the addition of other organic species, in this case polyaniline (PANI), will produce results that are comparable. Indeed, PANI alone expresses p-type TE properties, with a typical ZT = 10-4in the range and an inherently low κ = ~0.3 - 0.4 at RT. Using DFT+U methodology and energy minimization techniques, our research aims to examine the structural and TE characteristics of the interface between a {100} SrTiO3 surface and polyaniline in its various oxidation states.| Period | 7 Sep 2022 |
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| Event title | CCP5 Annual General Meeting 2022, 42nd edition |
| Event type | Conference |
| Conference number | 42 |
| Location | Huddersfield, United KingdomShow on map |
| Degree of Recognition | International |