Thermoelectric Bond Development for the Flat Plate Solar Thermoelectric Generator

This paper treats some of the theoretical and practical aspects of problems encountered in the development of bonds to thermoelectric materials for a flat plate solar thermoelectric generator. The specific problems encountered in the design and development of a lightweight generator capable of producing 3 watts/ft2 in a variety of earth orbital attitudes are presented and approaches to their solutions are outlined. Design considerations led to the selection of a Bi2Te3-based thermoelectric material and a barrier multilayer-type bond. Performance data are presented on various kinds of bonds to Bi2Te3 alloys; at present, it appears that barrier-type bond performance is critically dependent on the perfection of the barrier layer.