Thermoelectric conversion material and producing method thereof, and thermoelectric conversion element using the same

Abstract

Compound semiconductors, expressed by the following formula: Bi1-xMxCuwOa-yQ1yTeb-zQ2z. Here, M is at least one element selected from the group consisting of Ba, Sr, Ca, Mg, Cs, K, Na, Cd, Hg, Sn, Pb, Eu, Sm, Mn, Ga, In, Tl, As and Sb; Q1 and Q2 are at least one element selected from the group consisting of S, Se, As and Sb; x, y, z, w, a, and b are 0≦x<1, 0<w≦1, 0.2<a<4, 0≦y<4, 0.2<b<4 and 0≦z<4. These compound semiconductors may be used for various applications such as solar cells or thermoelectric conversion elements, where they may replace compound semiconductors in common use, or be used along with compound semiconductors in common use.

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.