Thermoradiative Cells Based on a p-type Cu3SbSe4 Semiconductor: Application of a Detailed Balance Model

Thermoradiative cells (TRCs) are power generators that efficiently convert low temperature waste heat into electricity. Although there is a growing interest in this potential technology, most of the works dealing with the study of efficient TRCs are focused on the theoretical analysis of their performance. In this work, a Cu 3 SbSe 4 semiconductor is proposed to be applied in TRCs. Firstly, the electronic structure of Cu 3 SbSe 4 has been obtained by using density functional theory (DFT) calculations. Then, DFT calculated bandgap values are employed to assess the efficiency of TRCs based on Cu 3 SbSe 4 . For this purpose, the power conversion efficiency has been calculated by using the Shockley–Queisser framework through a detailed balance model adapted to TRCs that includes the doping level through its effect on the energy barrier appearing at the pn-junction.