Influence of Cu on Transport Properties of Thermoelectric Thin Film Fabricated via Magnetron Co-sputtering Method

A simple magnetron co-sputtering method was used to fabricate Cu dispersed Bi0.5 Sb1.5 Te3 thin films, and the co-sputtering method was beneficial to the preferential growth of Bi0.5 Sb1.5 Te3 thin films along c-axis. Cu atoms were well-dispersed in the nano-structured materials. The electrical conductivity sharply increased with the increasing content of Cu due to the effect of Cu on transport property. For Cu target sputtering power of 20 W, a maximum power factor of 20 μW/(cm·K2) with an electrical conductivity of 15 × 104 S/m at 355 K were achieved.