Tyagi, Kriti and Gahtori, Bhasker and Bathula, Sivaiah and Jayasimhadri, M. and Sharma, Sakshi and Singh, NirajKumar and Haranath, D. and Srivastava, A. K. and Dhar, Ajay (2015) Crystal structure and mechanical properties of spark plasma sintered Cu2Se: An efficient photovoltaic and thermoelectric material. Solid State Communications, 207. pp. 21-25. ISSN 0038-1098

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Abstract

Copper selenide (Cu2Se) based materials are currently being investigated globally for efficient photovoltaic and thermoelectric (TE) device applications. Despite having enormous device potential its crystal structure and mechanical properties are still not fully explored owing to its complex behavior. Stereographic projection is one of such useful tools to estimate the crystallography of the material conclusively. In the current study, the crystal structure of alpha and beta-phases of Cu2Se was determined by its stereographic projections in reciprocal space. Further, mechanical properties of Cu2Se are highly important to avoid catastrophic failure and ensure longevity of the TE devices made out of these materials. Cu2Se exhibited the compressive strength of similar to 45 MPa with similar to 3% of plastic strain and a fracture toughness value of similar to 2 +/- 0.02 MPa root m, the latter being significantly higher than that of the other known TE materials. Finally, thermal shock resistance, which is one of the crucial parameters for the stability and longevity of the device applications, was calculated to be similar to 281 +/- 12W m(-1). Superior mechanical properties coupled with highly reported thermoelectric behavior makes Cu2Se as a potential candidate for green energy generation.

Item Type:	Article
Uncontrolled Keywords:	A.Semiconductor C. Scanningandtransmissionelectron microscopy D. Mechanicalproperties D. Phasetransitions
Subjects:	Applied Physics/Condensed Matter
Divisions:	UNSPECIFIED
Depositing User:	Dr. Rajpal Walke
Date Deposited:	20 Sep 2016 11:19
Last Modified:	20 Sep 2016 11:19
URI:	http://npl.csircentral.net/id/eprint/1752

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