Increasing the power factor in composite thermoelectric materials. Journal of Surface Investigation Volume 7, Issue 6, November 2013, Pages 1168-1172

Existing models of composite thermoelectric materials are analyzed. The power factor for several possible microstructures of composites that incorporate intermediate-valence intermetallides, silicides, and pure metals is calculated. It is shown that the largest power factor is achieved in the planar geometry (with alternating thermoelectric and pure metal layers). It is found that calculations according to the effective-medium theory are noticeably easier than those specified by methods based on calculating the effective kinetic coefficients. The maximum-possible power-factor values and optimal-mass fractions of good thermo-electric materials in composite systems are estimated.