High-temperature thermoelectric energy harvesting: materials and approaches

Abstract

Thermoelectric (TE) technology allows direct production of electrical energy from waste heat and natural heat sources. Although today thermoelectrics are hardly competitive with heat engines at large scale, absence of moving parts, inherent simplicity and scalability of this solid-state technology enable various applications in automotive/aerospace sector, in harsh and remote environments and for solar energy conversion. This talk will focus on opportunities for high-temperature thermoelectric energy harvesting and feature some promising approaches to design performing oxide-based thermoelectrics.