Rational structural design and manipulation advance SnSe thermoelectrics

Thermoelectrics can directly harvest electricity from waste heat through the Seebeck effect; therefore, their use has been regarded as an eco-friendly and sustainable solution to alleviate the pressure due to fossil fuel consumption and environmental pollution. Rational structural manipulation is critical to improving the thermoelectric performance of materials, and a timely review is required to summarize the recent progress in novel structural design for thermoelectrics. In this review, taking SnSe as a typical example and combined with other thermoelectric materials, we summarize recent advances in rational structural manipulation for thermoelectric materials, including point defects, dislocations, boundaries, nanoinclusions, and nanopores. The inherent links between syntheses, characterization, and thermoelectric properties by tailoring their structures are established. In addition, we discuss the development of nanoscale thermoelectric materials and their potential for application in flexible thermoelectric devices. This review can guide the design of high-performance thermoelectric materials.