High-Performance Ag(2)Se Film by a Microwave-Assisted Synthesis Method for Flexible Thermoelectric Generators

Flexible Ag(2)Se thermoelectric (TE) films are promising for wearable applications near room temperature (RT). Herein, a Ag(2)Se film on a nylon membrane with high TE performance was fabricated by a facile method. First, Ag(2)Se powders were prepared by a microwave-assisted synthesis method using Ag nanowires as a template. Second, the Ag(2)Se powders were deposited onto nylon via vacuum filtration followed by hot pressing. Through modulating the Ag/Se molar ratio for synthesizing the Ag(2)Se powders, an optimized Ag(2)Se film demonstrates a high power factor of 1577.1 μW m(−1) K(−2) and good flexibility at RT. The flexibility of the Ag(2)Se film is mainly attributed to the flexible nylon membrane. In addition, a six-leg flexible TE generator (f-TEG) fabricated with the optimized Ag(2)Se film exhibits a maximum power density of 18.4 W m(−2) at a temperature difference of 29 K near RT. This work provides a new solution to prepare high-TE-performance flexible Ag(2)Se films for f-TEGs.