Preparation and Characterization of Thermoelectric PEDOT/Te Nanorod Array Composite Films

In this study, we prepared Te nanorod arrays via a galvanic displacement reaction (GDR) on a Si wafer, and their composite with poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene) (PEDOT) were successfully synthesized by electrochemical polymerization with lithium perchlorate (LiClO(4)) as a counter ion. The thermoelectric performance of the composite film was optimized by adjusting the polymerization time. As a result, a maximum power factor (PF) of 235 µW/mK(2) was obtained from a PEDOT/Te composite film electrochemically polymerized for 15 s at room temperature, which was 11.7 times higher than that of the PEDOT film, corresponding to a Seebeck coefficient (S) of 290 µV/K and electrical conductivity (σ) of 28 S/cm. This outstanding PF was due to the enhanced interface interaction and carrier energy filtering effect at the interfacial potential barrier between the PEDOT and Te nanorods. This study demonstrates that the combination of an inorganic Te nanorod array with electrodeposited PEDOT is a promising strategy for developing high-performance thermoelectric materials.