Wearable and flexible thermoelectrics for energy harvesting

Conjugated polymers have emerged as potential candidates for thermal-energy harvesting. Their flexible and lightweight nature, as well as scalable processing, make them geometrically versatile for a large variety of applications, including powering wearable electronics that are not available for traditional inorganic materials. However, the long-range structural disorder greatly hinders their electrical conduction, and this far outweighs the induced low thermal conductivity; therefore, the thermoelectric performance needs to be significantly improved to fulfill the requirements of efficient devices. Composites and hybrid thermoelectric materials have been developed to capitalize on the individual strengths of conducting polymers and other components, including carbon nanotubes, graphene, and inorganic nanomaterials. In this article, we present recent advances in conjugated polymers, the associated hybrid thermoelectric composites, and the latest breakthroughs in the development of inorganic–organic hybrid superlattices.