Microscale thermoelectric devices for energy harvesting and thermal management

Superlattice material technologies in the Bi2Te3-material system can potentially enable efficient micro-scale thermoelectric devices for energy harvesting and active site-specific thermal management from ~200K to ~400K. The state-of-the-art in these thin film materials and the state of transition of these materials into device prototypes are presented. In the energy harvesting area, early results portend well for powering sensors and bio-implants, harnessing naturally occurring temperature gradients. Cooling of hot-spots (with flux levels > 1000 W/cm) in high power electronics appears feasible along with all solid-state micro-cooling down to 207K.