Enhanced Average Thermoelectric Figure of Merit of p-Type Zintl Phase Mg₂ZnSb₂ via Zn Vacancy Tuning and Hole Doping

Isoelectronic Zn substitution at the Mg site has been proved to be effective in regulating the carrier concentration of p-type Mg3Sb2 Zintl phase. However, the reported thermoelectric performance is still unsatisfactory compared with that of n-type Mg3Sb2 due to the poor electrical transport properties. Here, we report an enhanced average ZT through improving low-temperature ZTs by introducing Zn vacancy followed suppressing the bipolar effect by doping. First, the Zn vacancy simultaneously increases the power factor and decreases the thermal conductivity, leading to a peak ZT value of ∼0.52 at 773 K in Mg2Zn0.98Sb2. Additionally, doping Li or Ag at the Mg site is identified as a high-efficiency strategy for further increasing the carrier concentration and hence suppressing the bipolar effect. Finally, a peak ZT of ∼0.73 at 773 K and an average ZT of ∼0.46 between 300 and 773 K were obtained in Mg1.98Li0.02Zn0.98Sb2.