Spin Fluctuations Yield zT Enhancement in Ferromagnets

TL;DR

This study demonstrates that spin fluctuations in ferromagnetic CrTe significantly enhance thermoelectric performance, nearly doubling zT near the Curie temperature through combined effects on thermopower and thermal conductivity.

Contribution

It provides the first direct evidence that spin fluctuations can substantially improve thermoelectric figure-of-merit in ferromagnets, supported by experimental and theoretical analysis.

Findings

80% zT enhancement near TC in CrTe

Spin fluctuations increase thermopower and reduce thermal conductivity

Magnetic field suppresses thermopower enhancement

Abstract

Thermal fluctuation of local magnetization in magnetic metals intercoupled with charge carriers and phonons offers a path to enhance thermoelectric performance. The thermopower enhancement by spin fluctuations (SF) has been observed before. However, the crucial evidence for enhancing thermoelectric-figure-of-merit (zT) by SF has not been reported until now. Here we report evidence for such enhancement in the ferromagnetic CrTe. The SF leads to nearly 80% zT enhancement in ferromagnetic CrTe near and below TC~335 K. The ferromagnetism in CrTe is originated from the collective electronic and localized magnetic moments. The field-dependent transport properties demonstrate the profound impact of SF on the electrons and phonons. The SF simultaneously enhances the thermopower and reduces the thermal conductivity. Under an external magnetic field, the enhancement in thermopower is suppressed, and the thermal conductivity is enhanced, evidencing the existence of a strong SF near and below TC. The anomalous thermoelectric transport properties are analyzed based on theoretical models, and a good agreement with experimental data is found. Furthermore, the detailed analysis proves an insignificant impact from spin-wave contribution to the transport properties. This study contributes to the fundamental understanding of spin fluctuation for designing high-performance spin-driven thermoelectric materials.