Thermoelectric materials and devices are energy-harvesting devices that can effectively recycle waste heat into electricity. Thermoelectric power generation is widely used in factories, engines, and even in human bodies as they continuously generate heat. However, thermoelectric elements exhibit poor performance and low energy efficiency; research is being conducted to find new materials or improve the thermoelectric performance of existing materials, that is, by ensuring a high figure-of-merit (zT) value. For increasing zT, higher σ (electrical conductivity) and S (Seebeck coefficient) and a lower к (thermal conductivity) are required. Here, interface engineering by atomic layer deposition (ALD) is used to increase zT of n-type BiTeSe (BTS) thermoelectric powders. ALD of the BTS powders is performed in a rotary-type ALD reactor, and 40 to 100 ALD cycles of ZnO thin films are conducted at 100oC. The physical and chemical properties and thermoelectric performance of the ALD-coated BTS powders and pellets are characterized. It is revealed that electrical conductivity and thermal conductivity are decoupled, and thus, zT of ALD-coated BTS pellets is increased by more than 60% compared to that of the uncoated BTS pellets. This result can be utilized in a novel method for improving the thermoelectric efficiency in materials processing.

Thermoelectric materials can reversely convert heat and electricity into each other; therefore, they can be very useful for energy harvesting from heat waste. Among many thermoelectrical materials, SnSe exhibits outstanding thermoelectric performance along the particular direction of a single crystal. However, single-crystal SnSe has poor mechanical properties and thus it is difficult to apply for mass production. Therefore, polycrystalline SnSe materials may be used to replace single-crystal SnSe by overcoming its inferior thermoelectric performance owing to surface oxidation. Considerable efforts are currently focused on enhancing the thermoelectric performance of polycrystalline SnSe. In this study, we briefly review various enhancement methods for SnSe thermoelectric materials, including doping, texturing, and nano-structuring. Finally, we discuss the future prospects of SnSe thermoelectric powder materials.

The SnSe single crystal shows an outstanding figure of merit (ZT) of 2.6 at 973 K; thus, it is considered to be a promising thermoelectric material. However, the mass production of SnSe single crystals is difficult, and their mechanical properties are poor. Alternatively, we can use polycrystalline SnSe powder, which has better mechanical properties. In this study, surface modification by atomic layer deposition (ALD) is chosen to increase the ZT value of SnSe polycrystalline powder. SnSe powder is ground by a ball mill. An ALD coating process using a rotary-type reactor is adopted. ZnO thin films are grown by 100 ALD cycles using diethylzinc and H2O as precursors at 100oC. ALD is performed at rotation speeds of 30, 40, 50, and 60 rpm to examine the effects of rotation speed on the thin film characteristics. The physical and chemical properties of ALD-coated SnSe powders are characterized by scanning and tunneling electron microscopy combined with energy-dispersive spectroscopy. The results reveal that a smooth oxygenrich ZnO layer is grown on SnSe at a rotation speed of 30 rpm. This result can be applied for the uniform coating of a ZnO layer on various powder materials.

본 연구는 잣버섯 재배에서 자실체의 생장과 상대습도 와의 관계를 파악하기 위해 수행하였다. 상대습도가 증가 할수록 갓과 대의 수분함량은 높은 경향이었고, 초발이소 요일수와 생육일수는 상대습도 95%에서 가장 짧았다. 수 량 및 상품수량은 다른 처리구에 비해 상대습도 95%에서 가장 많았고, 갓의 균열정도는 상대습도 65%에서 가장 강하게 나타났다.

Sn-3.5Ag, Sn-3.5Ag-lZn Eoa납과 Cu기판과의 계면반응 및 접합특성에 관하여 검토하였다. Eoa납과 Cu기판이 접합된 시편은 100˚C와 160˚C에서 60일간 열처리하였으며, 전단하중을 가하여 강도를 측정하였다. 150˚C에서 열처리에 따른 계면반응층의 두게는 Sn-3.5Ag/Cu계면이 Sn-3.5A9-IZn/Cu계면보다 빠르게 성장하였으며, 반응생성물 성장은 t1/2에 비례하여 체적 확산 경향을 나타냈다. 계면 반응생성물은 Sn-3.5Ag/Cu계면의 경우 Cu6Sn5상이 형성되었고, Ag3Sn상은 반응층 내부 및 반응층과 땜납의 계면에 석출하였으며, Zn을 첨가한 경우에는 계면에 Cu6Sn5 상과 함께 Cu5Zn8상이 형성되었다. 땜납/기판의 전단강도는 Sn-3.5Ag합금에 Zn을 1% 첨가하면 증가하였으며, 열처리를 한 경우에는 감소하였다.