Thermoelectric properties of a eutectic SnSe 2 -Bi 2 Se 3 alloy

Data are presented which confirm that the SnSe 2 -Bi 2 Se 3 system has a eutectic phase diagram, with a eutectic at 67 mol % SnSe 2 , melting at 831 ± 5 K. The thermoelectric properties of the eutectic alloy in this system have been studied for the first time in the temperature range 300–600 K. The results demonstrate that this alloy is a promising low-temperature thermoelectric material: its minimal thermal conductivity (χ min ) and maximum thermoelectric figure of merit ( ZT max ) are 0.28 W/(m K) (416 K) and 0.56 (593 K), respectively.