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S. Paschen:
"Complex intermetallic compounds as thermoelectrics";
Vortrag: 1st International Conference on Complex Metallic Alloys and their Complexity, Nancy/ Frankreich (eingeladen); 04.10.2009 - 07.10.2009.

The world´s demand for energy is ever-increasing, boosting by more than two thirds in a narrow span of 30 years from 2000 to 2030. Of the primary input energy as much as 70 % are lost to the environment, to a good extent, via heat engines. Thermoelectric materials can convert part of this low-grade waste heat to electricity and thus increase the overall energy efficiency. However, for a widespread use of thermoelectric generators, materials with high thermoelectric figure of merit and good chemical and mechanical stability, consisting of non-toxic elements are needed. Within the European Network of Excellence Complex Metallic Alloys the materials class of clathrates has been investigated. These cage compounds are known for their low and glass-like thermal conductivities which have widely been attributed to the presence of "rattling" atoms. The influence of parameters such as substitutions, doping, and defects on the thermoelectric properties will be discussed.