Liquid Phase Diffusion Bonding for Thermoelectric Material Pb-Sn-Te

Liquid phase diffusion bonding was applied to the development of the joined thermoelectric material Pb-Sn-Te, which was expected to be superior to the monolithic Pb-Sn-Te. A Sn sheet 50μm thick was used for the inserted material. The sheet was sandwiched between Pb-Sn-Te segments with different hole concentrations, and subsequently the bonding was performed under 2MPa at 700K for 15min in Ar. The Sn sheet was changed to a SnTe interfacial layer of less than 10μm in thickness. The interfacial layer showed high toughness, and good ohmic and thermal contact up to 550K. Liquid phase diffusion bonding was an excellent technique for joining of thermoelectric material Pb-Sn-Te.