Impact of grain size on the Seebeck coefficient of bulk polycrystalline thermoelectric materials

Based on the Boltzmann transport equation of electrons and taking the scattering effect of electrons in the grain boundary as the boundary conditions of electrons transport in the grain, we presented a theoretical model for the Seebeck coefficient of bulk polycrystalline thermoelectric materials, and applied it to studying the grain size effect on the Seebeck coefficient. Then we discussed the effects of transmissivity, temperature and the mean free path of electrons on the size effect. The results show that the proposed theoretical model is reasonable and effective and the predicted results for the Seebeck coefficient are in good agreement with the experimental data reported in literature. The bulk polycrystalline materials have notable (big) grain size effects on the Seebeck coefficient, and the influences of transmissivity, temperature and the mean free path of electrons on the Seebeck coefficient are also significant.