Enhanced rectification effect in silver chalcogenide-based thermal diode by using precipitation/dissolution of Ag impurity across the structure phase transition

For developing high-performance composite-type thermal diodes, this study focuses on silver chalcogenides, which undergo structural phase transitions in the temperature range of 350 K to 473 K, accompanied by a significant stepwise change in thermal conductivity. Ag2 + xTe0.9S0.1 (x = 0, 0.01, 0.02, 0.025, 0.03, 0.035, 0.04, and 0.05) and Ag2S1 – ySey (y = 0.35, 0.375, 0.4, 0.425, and 0.45) samples were synthesized with precisely controlled compositions, and their temperature-dependent thermal conductivity across the phase transition was studied with the composition dependence. Ag2Te0.9S0.1 exhibits a stepwise decrease in thermal conductivity with transitioning from the low-temperature phase (LTP) to the high-temperature phase (HTP), and this behavior was further enhanced by adding excess Ag. The added silver precipitated in the LTP and dissolved into the HTP of Ag2Te0.9S0.1, resulting in a maximum thermal conductivity change (κLTP / κHTP) of 2.7-fold with the phase transition at x = 0.025. On the other hand, the Ag2S1 – ySey samples exhibited a stepwise increase in thermal conductivity with transitioning from the LTP to the HTP, and the maximum thermal conductivity change of κHTP / κLTP = 5 was observed at y = 0.4. A composite thermal diode was fabricated using Ag2.025Te0.9S0.1 and Ag2S0.6Se0.4 with the length ratio of Ag2.025Te0.9S0.1: Ag2S0.6Se0.4 = 47: 53 and, consequently, exhibited TRR = 3.3 when it was placed between heat reservoirs maintained at TH = 412 K and TL = 300 K. This TRR value is the largest ever reported for all-solid-state composite thermal diodes.