High Power Thermoelectric Generator Based on Vertical Silicon Nanowires

) collects together the good thermoelectric features of silicon, in terms of high power factor, and a very reduced thermal conductivity, which resulted in being exceptionally low (1.8 W/(m K), close to the amorphous limit). The generated electrical power density is remarkably high for a Si-based thermoelectric generator, and it is suitable for scavenging applications which can exploit small temperature differences. A full characterization of the device (Seebeck coefficient, thermal conductivity, maximum power output) is reported and discussed.