Thermoelectric Properties of Mg2Si0.995Sb0.005 Prepared by the High-Pressure High-Temperature Method

Mg2Si0.995Sb0.005 compound was prepared by the high-pressure high-temperature (HPHT) method. The simultaneous synthesis and consolidation in one step could be completed in < 15 min. The effects of pressure and temperature on the thermoelectric properties of Mg2Si0.995Sb0.005 were analyzed in this work. With the pressure and temperature increasing, the electrical conductivity rises markedly, while the Seebeck coefficient changes slightly, which results in significant enhancement of the power factor. The Mg2Si0.995Sb0.005 sample prepared under the condition of 1073 K and 2 GPa achieves the highest power factor of similar to 2.12 x 10(-3) W m(-1) K-2 at 575 K. As the sample prepared at 973 K and 2 GPa retains a lower thermal conductivity, it obtains the highest thermoelectric figure-of-merit ZT similar to 0.62 at 800 K. In conclusion, the HPHT method can serve as a route to prepare Sb-doped Mg2Si thermoelectric materials efficiently.