JP5176609B2 - Thermoelectric device element - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a thermoelectric device element that performs direct conversion from thermal energy to electrical energy.

  Thermoelectric power generation is a technology that directly converts thermal energy into electrical energy using the Seebeck effect in which an electromotive force is generated in proportion to the temperature difference applied to both ends of a substance. This technology has been put to practical use in remote power supplies, space power supplies, military power supplies, and the like.

  A conventional thermoelectric power generation device element has a so-called π-type structure in which a p-type semiconductor and an n-type semiconductor having different carrier signs are combined and thermally connected in parallel and electrically in series.

The performance of the thermoelectric conversion material used for the thermoelectric conversion device is often evaluated by the figure of merit Z or the figure of merit ZT made dimensionless by applying an absolute temperature. ZT is a quantity described as ZT = S ² T / ρκ, using S = Seebeck coefficient of the material, ρ = electric resistivity, κ = thermal conductivity. On the other hand, S ² / ρ considering only the Seebeck coefficient S and the electric resistivity ρ is called a power factor, and is a standard for determining the quality of the thermoelectric material power generation performance when the temperature difference is constant.

Bi ₂ Te ₃ currently in practical use as a thermoelectric conversion material has a ZT of about 1 and a power factor of 40 to 50 μW / cmK ² , and has relatively high characteristics at present. In the case of a device configuration, the power generation performance is not so high, and it is not practical enough for more applications.

On the other hand, as a device configuration other than the π-type, a device configuration utilizing the anisotropy of thermoelectric characteristics in a natural or artificial laminated structure has been proposed for a long time (see Non-Patent Document 1). However, according to Non-Patent Document 1, such a device does not show improvement in ZT, and therefore, development not intended for thermoelectric generation but mainly for measurement use such as an infrared sensor has been performed. Yes.

Further, as a material having a similar structure, Patent Document 1 discloses a thermoelectric conversion material in which an FeSi ₂ -based thermoelectric material and an insulating material such as SiO ₂ having a thickness of 100 nm or less are alternately arranged in a stripe pattern on a substrate. Is disclosed. According to Patent Document 1, the thermoelectric material having such a fine structure has an improved insulating effect although the Seebeck coefficient is improved by the effect of the fine structure as compared with the single characteristic of the FeSi ₂ -based material which is the main constituent material. Conductivity decreases due to the inclusion of substances. That is, since the electrical resistivity ρ increases, the internal resistance of the thermoelectric generator device element increases, and as a result, the electric power that can be extracted outside through the load decreases.

In addition, as a thermoelectric material having a laminated structure, Patent Document 2 discloses a thermoelectric material including a layered body made of a semimetal, a metal, or a synthetic resin. This applies to a conventional so-called π-type device configuration in which a temperature difference is applied in the laminating direction of the layered body and power is taken out via electrodes arranged so as to face each other in the same direction. Essentially, this is different from the device configuration disclosed in Non-Patent Document 1.
JP-A-6-310766 International Publication No. 00/076006 Pamphlet THERMOELECTRICS HANDBOOK, Chapter 45, CRC Press (2006)

As described above, the conventional thermoelectric device cannot obtain sufficient power generation performance sufficient for practical use in more applications. As a result of intensive studies on a device structure having a laminated body in order to realize a thermoelectric conversion device having practical performance, the present inventors have determined that the layer direction of the laminated body composed of metal and YbAl ₃ is the opposite direction of the electrode. As a result, the inventors found an unexpected finding that the electrical resistivity is suppressed and the power generation characteristics are greatly improved as compared with YbAl ₃ alone, and the invention of the present device has been reached based on this finding. .

In order to solve the conventional problem, the thermoelectric device element of the present invention includes a first electrode and a second electrode, and a laminate in which YbAl ₃ and a metal are alternately laminated, and the first electrode and It is electrically connected so that the direction of the layer of the laminated body is inclined with respect to the opposing direction of the second electrode, and is arranged to apply a temperature difference in a direction perpendicular to the opposing direction of the electrode Is done.

According to the thermoelectric device element of the present invention, the thickness ratio of the metal constituting the laminate and YbAl ₃ and the inclination angle formed by the direction of the layers of the laminate and the opposing direction of the electrodes are appropriately selected. High power generation characteristics that greatly exceed the performance of the material alone can be obtained. As a result, thermoelectric power generation exceeding the conventional performance becomes possible, and a practical thermoelectric power generation device element is realized. That is, it promotes the application of energy conversion between heat and electricity, and the industrial value of the present invention is high.

  Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.

(Embodiment 1)
FIG. 1 is a diagram showing a configuration of a thermoelectric device element according to Embodiment 1 of the present invention.

In FIG. 1, a thermoelectric device element is formed in such a configuration that a laminated body 13 is sandwiched between a first electrode 11 and a second electrode 12 that are arranged in parallel. The laminate 13 is configured by alternately laminating YbAl ₃ layers 14 and metal layers 15, and a direction 16 parallel to the layers is inclined by an angle θ with respect to the opposing direction 17 of the electrodes.

  A temperature difference is applied when driving the thermoelectric device element configured as described above, that is, the direction 18 in which the temperature gradient is generated is orthogonal to the opposing direction 17 of the electrode, and the generated power is the first electrode 11. And taken out via the second electrode 12. Specifically, as shown in FIG. 2, the temperature of the thermoelectric device element is set so that the high temperature portion 22 is in close contact with the one surface where the electrode of the thermoelectric device element 21 is not disposed and the low temperature portion 23 is in close contact with the other surface. Apply the difference. In this configuration, the direction 24 in which the temperature gradient occurs is perpendicular to the facing direction of the electrodes as shown in FIG.

In a conventional thermoelectric generator device element having a π-type structure, an electromotive force is generated only in the direction parallel to the direction in which the temperature difference is applied, and no electromotive force is generated in the vertical direction. Although details will be described in the examples described later, the present inventors have examined and optimized various conditions, and thereby, the angle formed between the direction 16 parallel to the layer of the laminated body 13 and the facing direction 17 of the electrode, and YbAl _{In the} process of investigating in detail the relationship between the thickness of the _three layers 14 and the metal layer 15 and the ratio thereof and the thermoelectric generation performance, an unexpectedly large heat is generated in the thermoelectric device element of the present invention by appropriately setting the above conditions. It was found that power generation performance can be obtained.

The 1st electrode 11 and the 2nd electrode 12 in the thermoelectric device element of this invention will not be specifically limited if it is a material with good electrical conductivity. Specifically, a metal such as Cu, Ag, Mo, W, Al, Ti, Cr, Au, Pt, or In or a nitride or oxide such as TiN, tin-added indium oxide (ITO), or SnO ₂ is preferable. Also, solder or conductive paste can be used.

  The metal layer 15 constituting the laminate 13 preferably has a high thermal conductivity κ and a low electrical resistivity. Specifically, Cu, Ag, Au, or an alloy made of these materials is used, and Cu and Ag are particularly preferable.

A method for producing the thermoelectric device element of the present invention will be described with reference to FIG. The laminated structure constituting the laminated body 13 can be produced by, for example, alternately laminating a metal 32 foil with the YbAl ₃ layer 14 deposited thereon, applying pressure, and further applying heat and pressure forming.

  Next, the laminated structure produced as described above is cut out and processed into a plate-like laminated body 13. At this time, the cutout range 33 is set so that the stacking direction becomes a desired inclination angle with respect to the surface of the plate-shaped stacked body 13 as shown by the broken line in FIG. If necessary, the laminated body 13 cut out may be polished. Then, the thermoelectric device element of the present invention can be obtained by providing the first electrode 11 and the second electrode 12 on a part or the entire surface of the pair of end surfaces in the inclined direction of the plate-like laminate 13.

The thickness ratio of the metal layer 15 and the YbAl ₃ layer 14 in the laminate 13 constituting the device is preferably in the range of 97: 3 to 50:50. This is because the power factor (S ² / ρ) does not become sufficiently large outside this range, as will be understood from Example 2 described later. Further, the angle θ formed by the direction 16 parallel to the layers of the laminate 13 and the facing direction 17 of the electrode is preferably in the range of 20 ° to 60 °, more preferably 30 ° to 50 °. preferable. This is because the value of the power factor (S ² / ρ) is not sufficiently increased when the angle is less than 20 ° or exceeds 60 °, as will be understood from Example 1 described later.

The production method for producing the thin film of the YbAl ₃ layer 14 using the metal layer 15 as a base is not particularly limited, so that it is based on vapor phase growth such as sputtering, vapor deposition, laser ablation, chemical vapor deposition, sol gel A method of forming a thin film from a solution by a method or a method of polishing and thinning a bulk body can be applied.

  As a method for manufacturing the first electrode 11 and the second electrode 12, various methods such as coating of conductive paste, plating, thermal spraying, and joining by soldering can be used in addition to vapor deposition such as vapor deposition and sputtering. .

(Embodiment 2)
FIG. 4 is a diagram showing the configuration of the thermoelectric generator device according to Embodiment 2 of the present invention.
In FIG. 4, a plate-like laminate manufactured in the same procedure as in the first embodiment is electrically connected via a connection electrode 43 to form a flat plate. By increasing the application area using the thermoelectric power generation device configured as described above, a larger amount of power generation can be obtained as a whole.

The connection electrode 43 in this device is not particularly limited as long as it is a material having good electrical conductivity. Specifically, metals such as Cu, Ag, Mo, W, Al, Ti, Cr, Au, Pt, and In, or nitrides and oxides such as TiN, tin-added indium oxide (ITO), and SnO ₂ are preferable. Also, solder or conductive paste can be used. As a manufacturing method, various methods such as plating and thermal spraying can be used in addition to vapor deposition such as vapor deposition and sputtering.

When driving the thermoelectric power generation device manufactured in this way, a temperature difference is applied by causing a high temperature part to adhere to one surface of the flat device and a low temperature part to the other surface to generate a heat flow. The electric power converted by the device from the heat flow can be extracted outside through the extraction electrode 44.

  In configuring the thermoelectric power generation device in the present embodiment, the laminates may be electrically connected in parallel as shown in FIG. 5 in addition to being electrically connected in series via the connection electrode 43. The advantage of connecting the stacked bodies in series is to increase the voltage when extracting power. When the stacked bodies are connected in parallel, in addition to reducing the internal resistance of the entire thermoelectric power generation device, the electrical connection of the entire device is maintained even if the electrical connection by the connection electrode 43 is partially broken. There are also advantages. That is, by appropriately combining these series and parallel connections (see, for example, FIG. 5), a thermoelectric power generation device having a high power generation capability can be configured.

(Example)
Hereinafter, more specific examples of the present invention will be described.

Example 1
As the YbAl ₃ layer 14 and the metal laminate 13, thermoelectric device elements of the present invention were manufactured using several metal materials. As shown in FIG. 3, the laminate of metal and YbAl ₃ is bonded with heat while superposing sheets of YbAl ₃ / metal foil / YbAl ₃ obtained by forming YbAl ₃ thin films on both sides of the metal foil. This was produced. Au was used for the first electrode 11 and the second electrode 12.

First, a thin film made of YbAl _{3 having a} film thickness of 5 μm was formed on both surfaces of a metal foil having a size of 100 mm × 100 mm and a thickness of 90 μm by RF magnetron sputtering. When sputtering, a Yb-Al sintered body is used as a sputtering target. Specific production conditions include sputtering power of 100 W, sputtering gas and atmospheric pressure of argon and 0.5 Pa, respectively, and metal at room temperature. YbAl ₃ was deposited on the foil.

After forming a laminate of metal and YbAl ₃ , it was cut into a size of 5 mm × 50 mm to obtain a strip-shaped piece. As the metal foil, a foil made of various metal materials such as gold, silver and copper was used. After repeating the same process, 200 pieces of these small pieces were superposed and heated at 650 ° C. for 30 minutes under a reduced pressure of 10 ⁻⁴ Pa while applying a load of 100 kg / cm ^{2 in} the stacking direction. Went. After crimping, a laminated structure of approximately 5 mm × 50 mm × 20 mm was obtained. The laminated structure was cut and polished to obtain a laminated structure of 3 mm × 48 mm × 20 mm. Observation of the laminated section with a scanning electron microscope confirmed that the metal layer was periodically laminated with a thickness of about 90 μm and a YbAl ₃ layer of about 10 μm. Further, when energy dispersive X-ray elemental analysis was performed on the YbAl ₃ layer, it was found that Yb: Al = 1: 3.

The laminated structure thus obtained was cut into a flat plate with an inclination of 10 ° intervals as shown in FIG. 3 by cutting using a diamond cutter as shown in FIG. The thickness of the flat plate was 1 mm, and a flat plate having a width of 3 mm and a length of 20 mm was prepared for each inclination angle (θ) in the range from 0 ° to 90 °. Thereafter, electrodes made of Au were formed on both ends of the long side by sputtering, and a device having a structure as shown in FIG. 1 was produced. The power generation performance was evaluated for the prepared samples. As shown in FIG. 2, one side of the flat plate device was heated to 150 ° C. with a heater, the other side was cooled to 30 ° C. with water cooling, and the electromotive voltage and electrical resistance between the terminals were measured. In the case of a device tilted 40 ° using silver foil, the electromotive force was 67 mV and the resistance was 0.27 mΩ. From this, the power factor was estimated to be 190 μW / cmK ² . When the performance of devices having different inclination angles using each metal material was measured in the same procedure, the results shown in Table 1 were obtained.

From the above results, when the inclination angle is 20 ° to 60 ° almost in common with each metal material, it is possible to obtain excellent device characteristics more than twice that of an element using Bi ₂ Te ₃ which is currently in practical use. I found out. In particular, when silver or copper was used as the metal material, it was confirmed that the performance was higher than that of other metals.

(Example 2)
In the same manner as in Example 1, laminated devices having different metal thicknesses were configured using silver and copper metal materials. The tilt angle was fixed at 40 °, and the thickness of the metal foil was changed to 25 μm, 35 μm, 45 μm, 47.5 μm, and 48.5 μm, and a laminated structure with YbAl ₃ having a total lamination period of 50 μm was produced. In this case, the proportions of YbAl ₃ are 50%, 30%, 10%, 5%, and 3%, respectively.

Table 2 shows the measurement results of the power factor of a thermoelectric device element having a thickness of 1 mm, a width of 3 mm, and a length of 20 mm produced by cutting into a 40 ° plate. The performance was influenced by the thickness ratio of YbAl ₃ , and it was confirmed that the performance was the best around 10%. This tendency was the same for silver and copper.

Example 3
A laminated device was constructed in the same manner as in Example 1 using a 20 μm copper foil as the metal foil. A YbAl ₃ thin film is formed on both sides of a 20 μm Cu foil while changing the film thickness from 0.3 μm to 10 μm, and thermocompression bonded. As a result, the YbAl ₃ layer thickness is 0.6 μm, 1 μm, 2 μm, 6 μm, 20 μm Cu / A YbAl ₃ laminated structure was produced. A device was produced by setting the cut-out angle from 20 ° to 60 ° every 10 °, and the power factor was measured. The results shown in Table 3 were obtained.

As a result, it was confirmed that excellent device performance was obtained in the range of 0.6 μm to 20 μm with respect to the YbAl ₃ layer thickness. This indicates that a favorable result is obtained when the ratio of Cu: YbAl ₃ in the entire stacking period is in the range of 97: 3 to 50:50, especially 10: 1 (the ratio of the YbAl ₃ layer is about 10%), the best performance is obtained.

Considering this result together with the result of Example 2, the performance of the laminated device does not depend on the absolute value of the thickness of the metal layer or the thickness of the YbAl ₃ layer, but the ratio of the thickness of the YbAl ₃ layer in the entire lamination cycle. It turns out that it depends on. In addition, the tilt angle is confirmed to exceed 150 μW / cmK ² in the range of 20 ° to 60 °, particularly 30 to 40 °, and is three times as large as the device using Bi ₂ Te ₃ which is currently in practical use. A high-performance thermoelectric device element of a degree higher than that was realized.

Example 4
In order to increase the mounting area and obtain a larger amount of power generation, a thermoelectric power generation device as shown in FIG. 4 using Cu as the metal 42, the connection electrode 43, and the extraction electrode 44 was produced.

A laminate made of Cu and YbAl ₃ was produced in the same procedure as in Example 1. The laminate was configured such that Cu was 20 μm thick and YbAl ₃ was 1 μm thick, that is, the thickness ratio of Cu and YbAl _{3 in} the stacking direction was 10: 1, and the tilt angle was 40 °. A total of 15 laminates with a length of 50 mm, a width of 3 mm, and a thickness of 0.5 mm were produced. In addition, a plate having a thickness of 0.5 mm was used as Cu for the connection electrode 43 and the extraction electrode 44.

  Fifteen produced laminates were arranged on a support 46 made of alumina at intervals of 1 mm, and the connection electrode 43 and the extraction electrode 44 were electrically connected in series using a silver paste. At this time, in order not to cancel the electromotive force due to the heat flow, the inclined structures of the adjacent laminated bodies were arranged so as to be opposite to each other as shown in FIG. 4, and a thermoelectric power generation device of about 60 mm × 60 mm was manufactured. When the resistance value between the extraction electrodes 44 was measured, it was 1.3 mΩ.

The power generation characteristics of the thermoelectric power generation device of this example produced by the above procedure were evaluated. The support 46 was cooled with water from the back surface to form a low temperature part. A ceramic heater serving as a high temperature part was adhered to the other surface of the device. When the low temperature part was kept at 25 ° C. and the high temperature part was kept at 40 ° C. with such a configuration, the open end electromotive force was 0.3 V, and a high value of 177 μW / cm K ² was obtained when the power factor was estimated. As a result, a maximum of 3 W of power could be extracted from this device.

  The thermoelectric power generation device element according to the present invention has excellent power generation characteristics and can be used as a power generator using heat such as exhaust gas discharged from an automobile or a factory.

  It can also be applied to small portable generators.

The figure which showed the structure of the thermoelectric-power generation device element in Embodiment 1 of this invention The figure which showed the structure at the time of driving the thermoelectric generation device element in Embodiment 1 of this invention The figure which showed the example of the cut-out range at the time of cutting to the laminated structure in Embodiment 1 of this invention The figure which showed the structure of the thermoelectric power generation device in Embodiment 2 of this invention The figure which showed the structure of the thermoelectric power generation device in Embodiment 2 of this invention

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 11 1st electrode 12 2nd electrode 13 Laminated body 14 YbAl ₃ layer 15 Metal layer 16 Direction parallel to the layer 17 Opposite direction of electrode 18 Direction in which temperature gradient occurs 21 Thermoelectric device element 22 High temperature portion 23 Low temperature portion 24 Temperature gradient Direction of occurrence 31 YbAl ₃
32 Metal 33 Cutting range 41 YbAl ₃
42 Metal 43 Connection electrode 44 Extraction electrode 45 Support

Claims (7)

A first electrode;
A second electrode facing the first electrode;
A laminated body sandwiched between the first electrode and the second electrode and electrically connected to both the first electrode and the second electrode;
The laminate is formed by alternately laminating YbAl ₃ layers and metal layers,
The YbAl ₃ layer and the metal layer are inclined at an angle θ with respect to a direction in which the first electrode and the second electrode face each other;
The angle θ is 30 ° or more and 50 ° or less,
The metal layer is made of Cu, Ag, or Au;
The ratio of the thickness of the metal layer to the thickness of the YbAl ₃ layer is in the range of 95: 5 to 70:30,
Wherein by applying a temperature difference in a direction perpendicular to the opposing direction, draws power through the first electrode and the second electrode, the heat generating device element. The metal layer is made of Cu or Ag;
The thermoelectric power generation device element according to claim 1. A first electrode;
A second electrode facing the first electrode;
A laminated body sandwiched between the first electrode and the second electrode and electrically connected to both the first electrode and the second electrode;
The laminate is formed by alternately laminating YbAl ₃ layers and metal layers,
The YbAl ₃ layer and the metal layer are inclined at an angle θ with respect to a direction in which the first electrode and the second electrode face each other;
The angle θ is 30 ° or more and 50 ° or less,
The metal layer is made of Cu, Ag, or Au;
The ratio of the thickness of the metal layer to the thickness of the YbAl ₃ layer is in the range of 95: 5 to 70:30,
By applying a temperature difference in a direction perpendicular to the direction of the opposite, it draws power through the first electrode and the second electrode, a manufacturing method of the thermoelectric device element,
The manufacturing method has the following steps:
A laminated structure forming step for obtaining a laminated structure in which YbAl ₃ layers and metal layers are alternately laminated;
A laminate cutout step of obtaining the laminate by cutting out the laminate structure on a surface inclined with respect to the lamination direction of the laminate structure;
An electrode forming step of forming the first electrode and the second electrode on the laminate; A first electrode;
A second electrode facing the first electrode;
A laminated body sandwiched between the first electrode and the second electrode and electrically connected to both the first electrode and the second electrode;
The laminate is formed by alternately laminating YbAl ₃ layers and metal layers,
The YbAl ₃ layer and the metal layer are inclined at an angle θ with respect to a direction in which the first electrode and the second electrode face each other;
The angle θ is 30 ° or more and 50 ° or less,
The metal layer is made of Cu, Ag, or Au;
The thickness of the metal layer: the YbAl _3-layer thickness ratio is 95: a heat generating device elements that are within the range from 5 to 70:30, power draw power through the first electrode and the second electrode A method,
The power generation method includes the following steps:
Applying a temperature difference in a direction perpendicular to the opposing direction; The metal layer is made of Cu or Ag;
The power generation method according to claim 4. A support plate;
A plurality of thermoelectric device elements provided on the support plate;
Comprising
The thermoelectric device element is the thermoelectric device element according to claim 1,
The plurality of thermoelectric generation device elements are electrically connected in series by each connection electrode that electrically connects one end of two adjacent thermoelectric generation device elements,
An extraction electrode is connected to each of the two ends of the plurality of thermoelectric device elements that are electrically connected in series,
A thermoelectric generation device in which electric power is extracted through the extraction electrode when a temperature difference is applied along a normal direction of the support plate. A support plate;
A plurality of thermoelectric device elements provided on the support plate;
The thermoelectric device element is the thermoelectric device element according to claim 1,
The plurality of thermoelectric device elements are electrically connected in parallel by two extraction electrodes that electrically connect both ends of each thermoelectric device element,
A thermoelectric generation device in which electric power is extracted through the extraction electrode when a temperature difference is applied along a normal direction of the support plate.

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