Preparation and Characterization of Thermoelectric Thin-Film Devices Consisting of Co-Evaporated Bi2Te3 and Sb2Te3 Films

A cross-plane thermoelectric thin-film device was obtained by flip-chip bonding the top substrate, which consisted of 50 pairs of co-evaporated n-type Bi2Te3 and p-type Sb2Te3 thin-film legs, to Cu/Au bumps in the bottom substrate. The actual temperature difference Delta T-G working across the thin-film legs was estimated to be 5 times smaller than the apparent temperature difference Delta T applied across the thin-film device. The thin-film device exhibited an open-circuit voltage of 50.7 mV and a maximum output power of 2.81 mu W when an apparent temperature difference Delta T of 38.9 K was applied across the top and bottom substrates of the thin-film device.