Low-temperature thermoelectric properties of Zn/Sb thin films prepared by magnetronsputtering

The Zn/Sb multi-layer thin films were prepared by magnetron sputtering method, which was sputtered on (100) Si five times by two single targets. The variations of the Seebeck coefficient, the electric conductivity and the power factor of three Zn/Sb composite films, which was of modulation ratio of 1:1, 3:2 and 4:1 respectively in a fixed modulation period of 40nm, were studied in the temperature range from 160K to 250K. Analyzing the structure and surface appearance by XRD and AFM, the film surface was smooth, dense, and without any macroparticles. The grains of the films grow under the preferred orientations. The experiment results show an obvious trend that the power factor decreases with increasing temperature. The power factor is at the highest value of 7543.54μW/mK² in 174K, as the modulation ratio is 4:1.