JPH01103887A - Thermoelectric device - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To improve a device of this design in efficiency, performance, and the degree of freedom of installation by a method wherein an N-type or P-type thin film-like semiconductor is formed on the surface to a plate-like insulator, and the both ends surfaces of the film-like semiconductor are made to be two-dimens ionally connected with plate-like or thin film-like metals respectively. CONSTITUTION:When a voltage is applied to terminals 14 and 15, heat release and absorption take place at a junction face between a copper film 9 and semiconductors 7a and 7b, but an N-type and a P-type semiconductor are alternately arranged, so that either heat absorption or heat release takes place at a substrate 12 or 13 respectively. Heat generated at an interface between the copper film 9 and a semiconductor 7 is made to be conducted through a diamond film 10 excellent in thermal conductivity and reach to the substrate to heat or cool it, where the substrates 12 and 13 are linked with each other through only the intermediary of material low in thermal conductivity, so that heat is hard to diffuse from one substrate to the other. If voltage impressed on the terminal 14 is higher than that impressed on the terminal 15, heat absorption takes place on the substrate 12 side. The substrate 12 is installed at the part where cooling is needed and the other substrate 13 is installed outside, and thus a cooling device excellent in controllability and efficiency can be obtained.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an improvement in a thermoelectric device that performs electrical cooling or heating using the Peltier effect, or generates electricity using a temperature difference using the Seebeck effect.

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, a thermoelectric device that converts heat into electricity or electricity into heat converts a P-type semiconductor 4 or an N-type semiconductor using a metal plate 1 and a metal plate 2, as shown in a conventional example in FIG. 3, and generates electricity by the temperature difference between the metals on both sides, or performs cooling by applying an electric field and passing a current.

The conventional example shown in FIG. 3 is a thermoelectric device in which N-type semiconductors 3 and P-type semiconductors 4 are arranged alternately in series. When a potential is applied between terminals 5 and 6, one of the metal plates is cooled and the other is is heated.

Problems to be Solved by the Invention In such conventional thermoelectric devices, as shown in Figure 3, the cooling section and the heating section are close to each other and are connected oppositely, resulting in a decrease in efficiency due to heat conduction. In addition to being visible, there were also installation restrictions. In addition, since the structure uses semiconductor materials in pieces, large amounts of rare materials such as (+) Te and Se are required, (2) the weight and volume are bulky, and (3) metal and semiconductor materials are required. (4) Due to the construction method, the gap between the elements becomes larger due to the need for a foreign substance to be interposed in the joint, which reduces efficiency.
It is not possible to widen the junction area between metal and semiconductor. As a result, heat is not sufficiently diffused to the radiator, increasing the temperature difference between the upper and lower metal plates. As a result, a decrease in efficiency occurs.

Means for Solving the Problems In the thermoelectric device according to the present invention, a thin film of N-type or P-type semiconductor is adhered to the surface of a plate-shaped insulator, and both ends of the semiconductor are coated with plate-shaped or film-shaped semiconductors. It is constructed by connecting it to metal in a plane.

Effects The effects obtained by such means are as follows. (1) It becomes possible to sufficiently separate parts where temperature differences occur, and it is possible to prevent a decrease in efficiency due to thermal diffusion. (2) Since a thin film semiconductor and a plate or thin film metal are connected in a planar manner, the bonding area becomes larger, increasing the area where heat and electricity are converted, and improving performance. can.

(3) Since the semiconductor film is formed on the surface of the plate-shaped insulator, the heat and electricity conversion part, that is, the junction between the metal and the semiconductor, is constructed in a flat plane, which not only reduces installation restrictions but also ,
The entire device can be made more compact. (4) If the plate-shaped insulator is made thin and flexible, the relative position of the thermoelectric converter can be freely changed as necessary.

Examples Examples according to the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. 1st
The figure shows one embodiment according to the invention. (a) is a front view of a thermoelectric device according to the present invention, and (b) is a sectional view taken along the AA plane of (a). 7a is a P-type semiconductor, and 7b is an N-type semiconductor, which are alternately formed linearly on the surface of the polyimide film 8 as shown in the figure. The semiconductor films 7a and 7b are coated with a copper film 9 on the upper end surfaces thereof by a method such as sputtering.
A P-type semiconductor and an N-type semiconductor are connected in series via a copper film 9. As shown in the cross-sectional view (b), this semiconductor and copper are insulated by a diamond thin film 10 and stacked. However, the semiconductor films on one substrate are insulated by an electrical insulator 11 having poor thermal conductivity, such as silicon oxide. Further, 12 and 13 are substrates for holding or heat diffusion, and are made of copper, which has high thermal conductivity.

The effect when the embodiment of the present invention is used for cooling will be described below. When voltage is applied to terminals 14.15,
Due to the Peltier effect, heat generation and heat absorption occur at the bonding surface between the copper film 9 and the semiconductors 7a and 7b. In this embodiment, since N-type and P-type semiconductors are arranged alternately, either heat absorption or heat radiation occurs in the substrate 12 or the substrate 13, respectively. The heat generated at the interface between the semiconductor 7 and the copper film 9 flows to the substrate through the diamond film, which has high thermal conductivity, and cools or heats the substrate. However, this heat
3 are connected only through a substance with low thermal conductivity, the structure is such that diffusion from one substrate to the other is difficult. When a higher voltage is applied to the terminal 14 than to the terminal 15, heat is absorbed on the substrate 12 side.

By installing this substrate 12 at a location that requires cooling and placing the other substrate 13 outside, a cooling device with very good controllability and high efficiency can be obtained.

Furthermore, if the substrates 12 and 13 are made extremely thin or removed, a cooling device with extremely fast response speed can be obtained.

As described above, the embodiment of the present invention has a thermoelectric element structure on a thin polyimide film and separates the heat generating part and the cooling part, which not only improves efficiency, but also makes it lightweight and compact, making it easy to install. constraints are also significantly reduced. Furthermore, each element is electrically insulated by diamond, which has high thermal conductivity, and is laminated to efficiently diffuse heat to the outside, so that a large cooling capacity can be achieved.

In addition, the semiconductor is constructed in a linear shape to create a structure that is resistant to deflection, and a copper film is attached to the end by sputter deposition, so the bonding area between the copper and the semiconductor is widened, resulting in uniform temperature distribution and high heat resistance. Gain efficiency.

In the embodiment according to the present invention, an example is shown in which P-type and N-type semiconductors are used, but a configuration may also be adopted in which only P-type or N-type semiconductors are used and current can flow in parallel.

FIG. 2 shows another embodiment of the present invention, which is a thermoelectric device in which N-type semiconductors are arranged in parallel.

In FIG. 2, (a) is a front view, and (b) is a BB sectional view. A linear N-type semiconductor 16 is formed on a polyimide film 17. The N-type semiconductor 16 is formed on the polyimide film 17 between the substrates 18 and 19. On the substrates 18 and 19, the polyimide film 17 is provided with an opening, and the hole allows the N-type semiconductor to pass through the copper film. It adheres to the substrate and is electrically conductive. With this parallel configuration,
Since a larger current value can be obtained than when N-type and P-type semiconductors are connected in series, a thermoelectric cooling device with higher performance can be obtained. In addition, in this embodiment, the substrates 18 and 19 are directly connected to each other.
Since it is bonded to the semiconductor 16, the shape is simple and compact.

In this example, only N-type semiconductors were used, but of course P-type semiconductors were used.
It can also be a type. Further, although this embodiment shows only -1 elements, it is also possible to stack them. In that case, the board 18
．． On the 19 side, copper, semiconductor, and copper are repeatedly laminated in this order, and between the substrates, an insulating film, a semiconductor, and an insulating film are repeatedly laminated in this order.

Effects of the Invention In the thermoelectric device of the present invention, a thin N-type or P-type semiconductor is formed on the surface of a plate-shaped insulator, and both ends of the semiconductor are formed in a plane with a plate-shaped or film-shaped metal. Since they are connected, the following effects can be achieved. In other words, it is possible to sufficiently separate parts with temperature differences,
Not only does efficiency and capacity improve, but the flexibility of installation also increases. Furthermore, since the semiconductor is formed into a thin film and is in direct contact with the metal, the temperature distribution is uniform, efficiency is improved, and the device can be made extremely compact and lightweight. As described above, according to the present invention, it is possible to obtain a thermoelectric device that is compact, lightweight, and has high capacity and efficiency.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

FIG. 1 is a configuration diagram of a thermoelectric device according to an embodiment of the present invention,
(a) is a front view, (b) is an AA sectional view thereof, and FIG. 2 is a configuration diagram of a thermoelectric device according to another embodiment of the present invention, (a) is a front view, and (b) is a BB sectional view. , FIG. 3 is a perspective view of a conventional thermoelectric device. 12.13,18,19. ,,substrate,? , 16. ．． ．． Semiconductor, 8.1? ,,. film. Name of agent: Patent attorney Toshio Nakao Haka1 Meigoku

Claims (5)

[Claims] (1) A thermoelectric device in which a thin N-type or P-type semiconductor is adhered to the surface of a plate-shaped insulator, and a plate-shaped or film-shaped metal is connected in a planar manner to each end surface of the thin N-type or P-type semiconductor. (2) The thermoelectric device according to claim 1, wherein the semiconductor is linear, and the linear semiconductors are connected in parallel or in series by metals connected to the surfaces of both ends. (3) The thermoelectric device according to claim 1, wherein a plurality of layers of semiconductors and metals are alternately laminated. (4) The thermoelectric device according to claim 3, which comprises a pair of laminated semiconductors and metals and insulates each pair with an insulator. (5) The thermoelectric device according to claim 3, wherein the insulator is a diamond thin film.