Evaluation of the Structure and Transport Properties of Nanostructured Antimony Telluride (Sb2Te3)

Antimony telluride, (Sb 2 Te 3 ), and its doped derivatives are considered to be among the best p -type thermoelectric (TE) materials for room temperature (300–400 K) applications. However, it is still desirable to develop rapid and economical routes for large-scale synthesis of Sb 2 Te 3 nanostructures. We report herein a high yield, simple and easily scalable synthetic method for polycrystalline Sb 2 Te 3 nanostructures. Prepared samples were compacted into dense pellets by use of spark plasma sintering. The products were characterized by x-ray diffraction and scanning electron microscopy. To investigate the anisotropic behavior of Sb 2 Te 3 TE transport property measurements were performed along and perpendicular to the direction of compaction. Thermal conductivity, electrical conductivity, and Seebeck coefficient measurement over the temperature range 350–525 K showed that the anisotropy of the material had a large effect on TE performance.