Unexpectedly low thermal conductivity in natural nanostructured bulk Ga2Te3

Here we introduce a promising thermoelectric material: Ga2Te3 with unexpectedly low thermal conductivity, in which certain kinds of superlattice structures naturally form. Two-dimensional vacancy planes with approximately 3.5nm intervals exist in Ga2Te3, scattering phonons efficiently and leading to a very low thermal conductivity, comparable to its calculated minimum. Ga2Te3 and related materials hold great promise in the field of thermoelectrics.