---
_id: '10073'
abstract:
- lang: eng
  text: Thermoelectric materials enable the direct conversion between heat and electricity.
    SnTe is a promising candidate due to its high charge transport performance. Here,
    we prepared SnTe nanocomposites by employing an aqueous method to synthetize SnTe
    nanoparticles (NP), followed by a unique surface treatment prior NP consolidation.
    This synthetic approach allowed optimizing the charge and phonon transport synergistically.
    The novelty of this strategy was the use of a soluble PbS molecular complex prepared
    using a thiol-amine solvent mixture that upon blending is adsorbed on the SnTe
    NP surface. Upon consolidation with spark plasma sintering, SnTe-PbS nanocomposite
    is formed. The presence of PbS complexes significantly compensates for the Sn
    vacancy and increases the average grain size of the nanocomposite, thus improving
    the carrier mobility. Moreover, lattice thermal conductivity is also reduced by
    the Pb and S-induced mass and strain fluctuation. As a result, an enhanced ZT
    of ca. 0.8 is reached at 873 K. Our finding provides a novel strategy to conduct
    rational surface treatment on NP-based thermoelectrics.
acknowledged_ssus:
- _id: EM-Fac
acknowledgement: "The authors thank the EMF facility in IST Austria for providing
  SEM and EDX measurements.\r\n"
article_number: '5416'
article_processing_charge: Yes
article_type: original
author:
- first_name: Cheng
  full_name: Chang, Cheng
  id: 9E331C2E-9F27-11E9-AE48-5033E6697425
  last_name: Chang
  orcid: 0000-0002-9515-4277
- first_name: Maria
  full_name: Ibáñez, Maria
  id: 43C61214-F248-11E8-B48F-1D18A9856A87
  last_name: Ibáñez
  orcid: 0000-0001-5013-2843
citation:
  ama: Chang C, Ibáñez M. Enhanced thermoelectric performance by surface engineering
    in SnTe-PbS nanocomposites. <i>Materials</i>. 2021;14(18). doi:<a href="https://doi.org/10.3390/ma14185416">10.3390/ma14185416</a>
  apa: Chang, C., &#38; Ibáñez, M. (2021). Enhanced thermoelectric performance by
    surface engineering in SnTe-PbS nanocomposites. <i>Materials</i>. MDPI. <a href="https://doi.org/10.3390/ma14185416">https://doi.org/10.3390/ma14185416</a>
  chicago: Chang, Cheng, and Maria Ibáñez. “Enhanced Thermoelectric Performance by
    Surface Engineering in SnTe-PbS Nanocomposites.” <i>Materials</i>. MDPI, 2021.
    <a href="https://doi.org/10.3390/ma14185416">https://doi.org/10.3390/ma14185416</a>.
  ieee: C. Chang and M. Ibáñez, “Enhanced thermoelectric performance by surface engineering
    in SnTe-PbS nanocomposites,” <i>Materials</i>, vol. 14, no. 18. MDPI, 2021.
  ista: Chang C, Ibáñez M. 2021. Enhanced thermoelectric performance by surface engineering
    in SnTe-PbS nanocomposites. Materials. 14(18), 5416.
  mla: Chang, Cheng, and Maria Ibáñez. “Enhanced Thermoelectric Performance by Surface
    Engineering in SnTe-PbS Nanocomposites.” <i>Materials</i>, vol. 14, no. 18, 5416,
    MDPI, 2021, doi:<a href="https://doi.org/10.3390/ma14185416">10.3390/ma14185416</a>.
  short: C. Chang, M. Ibáñez, Materials 14 (2021).
corr_author: '1'
date_created: 2021-10-03T22:01:23Z
date_published: 2021-09-19T00:00:00Z
date_updated: 2025-04-14T09:29:32Z
day: '19'
ddc:
- '540'
department:
- _id: MaIb
doi: 10.3390/ma14185416
external_id:
  isi:
  - '000700689400001'
  pmid:
  - '34576640'
file:
- access_level: open_access
  checksum: 4929dfc673a3ae77c010b6174279cc1d
  content_type: application/pdf
  creator: cchlebak
  date_created: 2021-10-14T11:56:39Z
  date_updated: 2021-10-14T11:56:39Z
  file_id: '10140'
  file_name: 2021_Materials_Chang.pdf
  file_size: 4404141
  relation: main_file
  success: 1
file_date_updated: 2021-10-14T11:56:39Z
fulldoi: https://doi.org/10.3390/ma14185416
has_accepted_license: '1'
intvolume: '        14'
isi: 1
issue: '18'
language:
- iso: eng
license: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/
month: '09'
oa: 1
oa_version: Published Version
pmid: 1
project:
- _id: 9B8804FC-BA93-11EA-9121-9846C619BF3A
  grant_number: M02889
  name: Bottom-up Engineering for Thermoelectric Applications
publication: Materials
publication_identifier:
  eissn:
  - 1996-1944
publication_status: published
publisher: MDPI
quality_controlled: '1'
scopus_import: '1'
status: public
title: Enhanced thermoelectric performance by surface engineering in SnTe-PbS nanocomposites
tmp:
  image: /images/cc_by.png
  legal_code_url: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/legalcode
  name: Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International Public License (CC-BY 4.0)
  short: CC BY (4.0)
type: journal_article
user_id: 4359f0d1-fa6c-11eb-b949-802e58b17ae8
volume: 14
year: '2021'
...