Emerging Theory, Materials, and Screening Methods: New Opportunities for Promoting Thermoelectric Performance

High-performance thermoelectric materials have attracted immense interest due to the capability of directly converting thermal energy into electrical energy. The correlation and inherent complexity between the thermoelectric parameters pose serious challenges to improving the materials' thermoelectric performance. Herein, the emerging novel theories in the field of thermoelectrics are summarized, such as the coherent phonon, nanophononic metamaterial, rattling effect, topological phonon, and topological electron. The impacts of these new concepts on thermoelectric performance are then reviewed. Finally, a number of promising thermoelectric materials such as one-dimensional nanowires, two-dimensional layered materials, and nanomesh structures are discussed. The advanced understanding of thermal and electrical transport properties in thermoelectric materials is presented herein, providing new opportunities for improving thermoelectric performance.