Thin Films of Topological Nodal Line Semimetals as a Candidate for Efficient Thermoelectric Converters

TL;DR

This paper explores thin films of topological nodal line semimetals as promising thermoelectric materials, highlighting their potential for high efficiency due to favorable electronic and thermal properties.

Contribution

It demonstrates that thin films of topological nodal line semimetals can achieve high thermoelectric efficiency by optimizing Seebeck coefficient and thermal conductivity, offering new avenues for thermoelectric material development.

Findings

High Seebeck coefficient in thin films

Low phonon thermal conductivity observed

Insights into spin current induced by temperature gradient

Abstract

Thermoelectric materials intrigue much interest due to their wide range of application such as power generators and refrigerators. The efficiency of thermoelectric materials is quantified by the figure of merit, and a figure greater than unity is desired. To achieve this, a large Seebeck coefficient and low phonon thermal conductivity are required. We show that this can be achieved with a thin film of topological nodal line semimetals. We also discusses the correlation effect and spin current induced by a temperature gradient. The obtained results provide insight for the improvement of thermoelectric materials.