Enhanced thermoelectric performances in BiCuSeO oxyselenides via Er and 3D modulation doping

Abstract BiCuSeO is a kind of promising oxide-based thermoelectric material with special natural superlattice structure. Herein, the effects of Er doping and modulation doping on the thermoelectric properties of BiCuSeO have been investigated. The results indicate that Er doping can tune the Fermi level, widen the band gap, reduce the energy offset between the heavy band and the light band, and then greatly improve the electrical conductivity, power factor and ZT . Modulation doping based on Er doping can increase carrier concentration and power factor significantly while maintaining high carrier mobility. Meanwhile, due to the special heterostructure of the modulation doping sample, the phonon scattering is greatly enhanced, and the corresponding lattice thermal conductivity is significantly reduced. Finally, the maximum ZT value reaches 0.99 for the modulation doped Bi 0.92 Er 0.08 CuSeO bulk at 873 K, which was ~1.8 times as that of the pristine BiCuSeO sample.