Thermoelectric materials have the remarkable ability to convert heat into electrical energy and vice versa. As such, they present solutions for waste heat recovery, diminishing our dependence on fossil fuels and decreasing the associated risk of a future energy crisis. Clathrates are “phonon glass-electron crystal” (PGEC) systems, where the natural coupling of electrical and thermal conductivities is partially resolved. Pnicogen-based clathrates, with high concentrations of transition metals in their clathrate frameworks, exhibit promising thermoelectric properties along with unprecedented structural chemistry. Their challenging crystal structures have been determined by a combination of synchrotron X-ray and neutron powder diffractions. Trends in these results, including their syntheses, features of their crystal and electronic structures, and their structure-property relationships will be discussed.

Structural variability and thermoelectric properties of transition metal-pnicogen clathrates

251st National Meeting (2016)

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