Cellulose Nanofiber- Bismuth Telluride Composite Film for Micro Thermoelectric Generator

This study introduces a novel strategy to significantly enhance the thermoelectric performance of Bi2Te3 films by dispersing cellulose nanofibers (CNFs) through an advanced electrodeposition process. The resulting composite films, with thicknesses up to 400 µm, exhibit exceptional structural integrity, remaining crack-free even at such substantial dimensions. Incorporating CNFs boosts the thermoelectric figure of merit (ZT) by an impressive 625%, achieving a value of 0.76. This enhancement is attributed to the dual role of CNFs in suppressing thermal conductivity while simultaneously maintaining high electrical conductivity and optimizing the Seebeck coefficient.