title: Spark erosion: a high production rate method for producing Bi(0.5)Sb(1.5)Te3 nanoparticles with enhanced thermoelectric performance.
abstract: We report a new 'spark erosion' technique for producing high-quality  thermoelectric nanoparticles at a remarkably high rate and with enhanced thermoelectric properties. The technique was utilized to synthesize p-type Bi(0.5)Sb(1.5)Te(3) nanoparticles with a production rate as high as 135 g h(-1), using a relatively small laboratory apparatus and low energy consumption. The compacted nanocomposite samples made from these nanoparticles exhibit a well-defined, 20-50 nm size nanograin microstructure, and show an enhanced figure of merit, ZT, of 1.36 at 360 K. Such a technique is essential for providing inexpensive, oxidation-free nanoparticles which are required for the fabrication of high performance thermoelectric devices for power generation from waste heat, and for refrigeration.
authors.affiliation: Materials Science and Engineering, UC San Diego, CA 92093, USA.
authors.forename: P K
authors.initials: PK
authors.lastname: Nguyen
authors.forename: K H
authors.initials: KH
authors.lastname: Lee
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Moon
authors.forename: S I
authors.initials: SI
authors.lastname: Kim
authors.forename: K A
authors.initials: KA
authors.lastname: Ahn
authors.forename: L H
authors.initials: LH
authors.lastname: Chen
authors.forename: S M
authors.initials: SM
authors.lastname: Lee
authors.forename: R K
authors.initials: RK
authors.lastname: Chen
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Jin
authors.forename: A E
authors.initials: AE
authors.lastname: Berkowitz