Devices for generating electrical energy along with methods of fabrication and methods of use are disclosed. An example device can comprise one or more layers of a transition metal dichalcogenide material. An example device can comprise a mechano-electric generator. Another example device can comprise a thermoelectric generator.

Apparatus for a gas turbine engine, the apparatus comprising: an engine core; a nacelle; and thermal energy transfer apparatus configured to transfer thermal energy from the engine core to the nacelle.

The disclosed apparatus cools a drinking liquid utilizing the Peltier effect, and optionally includes a system of gasification for gasifying the drinking liquid, once cooled. The cooling system in turn includes: a first cooling circuit, in which an operating fluid circulates, associated with a hot side of a Peltier cell; and a second cooling circuit, in which the drinking liquid circulates, associated with a cold side of the Peltier cell. The Peltier cell is integrated in a cooling unit exhibiting a special sandwich structure which integrates, as well as the Peltier cell, a first and a second heat exchanger, apt respectively to exchange directly the heat between the operating fluid which circulates in the first cooling circuit and the hot side of the Peltier cell and between the drinking liquid which circulates in the second cooling circuit and the cold side of the Peltier cell to cool the drinking liquid.

A semiconductor chip includes a semiconductor circuit layer and a semiconductor thermoelectric layer disposed on a substrate. The circuit layer includes a first circuit and a second circuit disposed horizontally in a first direction. The thermoelectric layer includes a first on-die thermoelectric element, where the thermoelectric layer is disposed on the circuit layer including the first circuit and the second circuit. The first on-die thermoelectric element is configured to distribute heat generated at the first circuit horizontally in the first direction toward the second circuit.

This invention discloses an active load generation circuit and a filter. The active load generation circuit includes a transistor, a voltage control circuit, a voltage offset and tracking circuit, and a temperature sensing circuit. The transistor provides an impedance and includes a control terminal and an input terminal. The control terminal receives a control voltage, the input terminal receives an input signal, and the impedance is associated with the control voltage. The voltage control circuit generates an intermediate voltage according to a power supply voltage and a first reference voltage. The voltage offset and tracking circuit generates the control voltage according to the input signal and the intermediate voltage such that the control voltage varies with the input signal. The temperature sensing circuit senses an ambient temperature of the active load generation circuit and adjusts the first reference voltage according to the ambient temperature.

A malfunction detection device is provided for a power generator that includes a thermoelectric transducer module including, as a plurality of thermoelectric transducers, a plurality of semiconductor single crystals in which the band gap energy of an intrinsic semiconductor part is lower than the band gap energies of an n-type semiconductor part and a p-type semiconductor part. The malfunction detection device performs a malfunction detection of the power generator on a transducer-to-transducer basis. According to this malfunction detection process, the temperatures at three points of the thermoelectric transducer are detected or estimated. An estimated electromotive voltage is calculated on the basis of the temperatures at three points that are defected or estimated. A malfunction of the power generator is detected when the absolute value of the difference between the estimated electromotive voltage and an actual electromotive voltage is greater than or equal to a threshold value.

A far-field radiative thermal rectification device uses a phase change material to achieve a high degree of asymmetry in radiative heat transfer. The device has a multilayer structure on one side and a blackbody on other side. The multilayer structure can consist of a transparent thin film of KBr sandwiched between a thin film of VO.sub.2 and a reflecting layer of gold. When VO.sub.2 is in its insulating phase, the structure is highly reflective due to the two transparent layers on highly reflective gold. When VO.sub.2 is in the metallic phase, Fabry-Perot type of resonance occurs and the tri-layer structure acts like a wide-angle antireflection coating achieved by destructive interference of partially reflected waves making it highly absorptive for majority of spectral range of thermal radiation. The instant structure can form the active part of a configuration that acts like a far-field radiative thermal diode.

A first generator produces a first signal that is supplied to an energy storage circuit. Energy transfer circuitry coupled to the energy storage circuit transfers energy stored in the energy storage circuit to an output node. A driver circuit coupled to the energy transfer circuitry switches the energy transfer circuitry between a state where energy from the first signal is stored in the energy storage circuit and a state where energy stored in the energy storage circuit section is delivered to the output node. A voltage at the energy storage circuit varies between an upper value and a lower value around a voltage setting point. A second generator, which is a scaled-down replica of the first generator, produces a second signal that is indicative of an open-circuit voltage of the first generator. The driver circuit uses the second signal to set the voltage setting point.

A thermoelectric conversion element includes: a magnetic body having a magnetization; and an electromotive body formed of material exhibiting a spin orbit coupling and jointed to the magnetic body. The magnetic body has an upper joint surface jointed to the electromotive body. The upper joint surface has concavities and convexities.

A thermoelectric module with high efficiency is provided. The thermoelectric module may include a first substrate including a plurality of first electrodes, a second substrate provided opposite the first substrate and including a plurality of second electrodes, a plurality of thermoelectric devices provided between the first substrate and the second substrate and electrically connected to the first electrodes and the second electrodes, and a wire connection hole configured to penetrate through at least one of the first substrate and the second substrate and expose a portion of at least one surface of the first electrodes and the second electrodes.