Thermoelectrical properties of ternary lead chalcogenide plumbum-selenium-tellurium thin films with excess of tellurium prepared by plasma-chemical vapor deposition

Ternary chalcogenide PbSeTe thin films with sufficient excess of tellurium over the stoichiometry Pb50Se50-xTex have been fabricated by Plasma-enhanced chemical vapor deposition technique. High-pure elemental lead, tellurium, and selenium were the starting materials, that were supplied by the flow of high-pure argon into the 40 MHz inductively-coupled non-equilibrium plasma discharge at low pressure 13 Pa. Argon also served as the plasma-feed gas. The structural properties and chemical composition of the films were characterized by scanning electron microscope and X-ray diffraction analysis, respectively. The dependence of the Seebeck coefficient, resistivity and thermoelectric power factor on structural properties and composition were investigated. The influence of film composition on thermoelectric characteristics was studied.

Automated summary

In this study, ternary chalcogenide PbSeTe thin films with excess of tellurium were fabricated using plasma-enhanced chemical vapor deposition technique. The structural properties and composition of the films were characterized, and the influence of film composition on thermoelectric characteristics was investigated.