Solution synthesis ultrathin PbTe0.5Se0.5 nanowires and the low lattice thermal conductivity

Preparation of PbTe-based ternary chalcogenide nanowires with controllable phases and thermoelectric properties still faces challenges. Hereby, we employ a solution approach to synthesis highly uniform PbTe0.5Se0.5 single-phase nanowires, and the resulting effects of different synthetic conditions on phase, morphology and size were investigated. As-synthesized PbTe0.5Se0.5 nanowires were consolidated to form nanostructured bulk materials. Unexpectedly, there were dense nanostructures inside the bulk after sintering, which showed a very low lattice thermal conductivity of 0.45 W m(-1) K-1 at 550 K. It is suggested that the controllable synthesis of PbTe0.5Se0.5 nanowires is available, and the thermal conductivity can be effectively reduced by this method.