Three-dimensional Dirac semimetal Cd3As2 as a potential candidate for thermoelectric applications

As Dirac semimetal Cd3As2 exhibits very high mobility charge carrier and large thermoelectric power(S), one might think of its possible thermoelectric application. Whether it will be useful in thermoelectric application or not is mainly determined by the thermoelectric figure of merit (ZT). We observe that ZT of this material linearly increases with increasing temperature like S and no sign of saturation up to 350 K. At that temperature, the value of ZT has been found to be large ∼ 0.16, comparable to the well-known thermoelectric material Bi2Te3. We believe that the values of thermoelectric parameters (S, ZT) in Cd3As2 can be enhanced further to reach the practical limit for the application by increasing the temperature and sample modification (doping, nanostructuring, inclusion of nanocomposite, etc.).