Thermoelectric Studies of Nanoporous Thin Films with Adjusted Pore-Edge Charges

TL;DR

This paper develops an analytical model to understand how pore-edge charges influence the thermoelectric properties of nanoporous thin films, aiding in the design of materials with optimized thermoelectric and sensing performance.

Contribution

An analytical model is introduced to relate pore-edge charges to thermoelectric properties in nanoporous 2D materials, enabling better analysis and design.

Findings

Model explains the impact of pore-edge charges on thermoelectric efficiency.

Applicable to various nanoporous thin films and 2D materials.

Facilitates improved material engineering for thermoelectric and sensing applications.

Abstract

In recent years, nanoporous thin films have been widely studied for thermoelectric applications. High thermoelectric performance is reported for nanoporous Si films, which is attributed to the dramatically reduced lattice thermal conductivity and bulk-like electrical properties. Porous materials can also be used in gas sensing applications by engineering the surface-trapped charges on pore edges. In this work, an analytical model is developed to explore the relationship between the thermoelectric properties and pore-edge charges in a periodic two-dimensional nanoporous material. The presented model can be widely used to analyze the measured electrical properties of general nanoporous thin films and two-dimensional materials.