Thermoelectric material and process of producing the same

Abstract

A p or n type thermoelectric material containing, as constituent elements, at least one of Bi and Sb and at least one of Te and Se. The n type one may further contain at least one element selected from I, Cl, Hg, Br, Ag, and Cu. The thermoelectric material has a sea-island microstructure, in which the sea phase is crystal grains having an average grain size of 5 μm or smaller with their c-axes aligned unidirectionally, and the island phase is elongated crystal gains with an average length of 20 to 50 μm that are randomly distributed in the sea phase. The island phase has a microstructure in which at least one of the constituent elements is segregated. A process of producing the thermoelectric material includes mixing a sinter material with a powder having a higher Te content than the sinter material and applying heat and pressure to the mixture.

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.