SnTe is a promising material for thermoelectric applications, but its performance is limited by a low Seebeck coefficient and high thermal conductivity due to high hole concentration.
A novel approach using a core-shell structure of amorphous carbon-coated PbTe nanoparticles in the Sn1-ySbyTe matrix is introduced to improve the thermoelectric properties, resulting in unique microstructures and reduced thermal conductivity.
This method leads to a peak thermoelectric figure of merit (ZT) of 1.07 at 873 K, significantly improving SnTe’s performance, providing new strategies for enhancing thermoelectric systems.