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Transport properties and microstructure of indium-added cobalt–antimony-based skutterudites

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  03 June 2011

Andreas Sesselmann ,
Titas Dasgupta ,
Klemens Kelm ,
Eckhard Müller ,
Susanne Perlt  and
Sebastian Zastrow
Andreas Sesselmann*
Affiliation:
Institute of Materials Research, German Aerospace Center (DLR), D-51170 Köln, Germany
Titas Dasgupta
Affiliation:
Institute of Materials Research, German Aerospace Center (DLR), D-51170 Köln, Germany
Klemens Kelm
Affiliation:
Institute of Materials Research, German Aerospace Center (DLR), D-51170 Köln, Germany
Eckhard Müller
Affiliation:
Institute of Materials Research, German Aerospace Center (DLR), D-51170 Köln, Germany
Susanne Perlt
Affiliation:
Leibniz-Institute for Surface Modification, D-04318 Leipzig, Germany
Sebastian Zastrow
Affiliation:
Institute of Applied Physics, University of Hamburg, D-20355 Hamburg, Germany
*
a)Address all correspondence to this author. e-mail: andreas.sesselmann@dlr.de
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Abstract

Indium has attracted much attention as a beneficial addition to cobalt–antimony-based skutterudites as a result of good thermoelectric performance. In this study, as-cast InxCo4Sb12 with x = 0.05, 0.2 were examined using x-ray diffraction analysis and scanning electron microscopy. For x = 0.2 we found, besides the skutterudite main phase, nanometer-sized regions of secondary phases distributed along the grain boundaries, which exhibit substructures. As-cast material with x = 0.05 does not show visible precipitates. We further observed that changing one of the heat treatment parameters of In0.2Co4Sb12 has a major effect on the microstructure and shape of the precipitates, but minor influence on the skutterudite matrix composition. Energy dispersive x-ray spectroscopy analysis by transmission electron microscopy) reveals that indium is to a large extent distributed into the skutterudite structure. Measurements of short-term sintered material confirm that the addition of indium and particularly the modification of the synthesis parameter entails to an enhanced ZT.

Keywords

ThermoelectricityMicrostructureScanning electron microscopy
Type
Articles
Information
Journal of Materials Research , Volume 26 , Issue 15: Focus Issue: Advances in Thermoelectric Materials , 14 August 2011 , pp. 1820 - 1826
Copyright
Copyright © Materials Research Society 2011

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References

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