Examination of microstructural liquid phase behavior during heat treatments of doped-PbTe thermoelectric materials

Thermoelectric materials offer a potentially valuable source of energy by converting a temperature gradient to electricity. Recent progress in alloying, doping, and nanostructuring these materials has increased their figure of merit, bringing this technology closer to widespread use. However, the costs associated with processing and questions about fatigue reliability during long-term use could slow the development process. Liquid phase microstructure shapes are critical for sintering; further understanding of these shapes could potentially be used to improve mechanical response and lower overall processing costs. Here we review our progress with respect to the microstructure development of the material depending on heat treatment and composition.