Promising Thermoelectric Performance in Two-Dimensional Semiconducting Boron Monolayer.

A heavy element is a special character for high thermoelectric performance since it generally guarantees a low lattice thermal conductivity. Here, we unexpectedly found a promising thermoelectric performance in a two-dimensional semiconducting monolayer consisting of a light boron element. Using first-principles combined with the Boltzmann transport theory, we have shown that in contrast to graphene or black phosphorus, the boron monolayer has a low lattice thermal conductivity arising from its complex crystal of hexagonal vacancies.

Origins of Minimized Lattice Thermal Conductivity and Enhanced Thermoelectric Performance in WS/WSe Lateral Superlattice.

We report a configuration strategy for improving the thermoelectric (TE) performance of two-dimensional transition metal dichalcogenide WS based on the experimentally prepared WS/WSe lateral superlattice (LS) crystal. On the basis of density function theory combined with a Boltzmann transport equation, we show that the TE figure of merit of monolayer WS is remarkably enhanced when forming into a WS/WSe LS crystal. This is primarily ascribed to the almost halved lattice thermal conductivity due to the enhanced anharmonic processes.

Spin Seebeck effect in bipolar magnetic semiconductor: A case of magnetic MoS nanotube.

Bipolar magnetic semiconductors (BMSs) are a new member of spintornic materials. In BMSs, one can obtain 100% spin-polarized currents by means of the gate voltage. However, most of previous studies focused on their applications in spintronics instead of spin caloritronics.