Preparation and characterisation of nanostructured spherical powders for thermoelectric applications

Ultrasonic spray pyrolysis (USP) method has been used to prepare metallic and ceramic materials in the form of aggregates consisting of nanocrystals and/or amorphous phase. The technique allows the use of a wide range of precursors and can be used to prepare fine hollow spherical particles with very thin (< 10 nm) walls. As far as morphology is concerned, the synthesized powders satisfy the requirements for precursors for subsequent preparation of new nanostructured thermoelectric materials. (C) 2002 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.