Doping Effects on the Thermoelectric Properties of AgSbTe2

A doping study of ternary alloys AgSbTe2 doped with excess AgTe, NaTe, NaSe, TlTe, BiTe, and excess Pb showed that carrier concentrations can be effectively manipulated. Measured thermopower and resistivity indicate a shift of the power factor peak toward the lower-temperature regime. The measured figure of merit ZT increases from 0.5 to 1.2 after doping with NaSe, and 1.05 with TlTe, at 400 K. We also show that doping with Bi and Pb has a negative effect on the thermoelectric properties of these alloys.