An apparatus for solid state energy harvesting includes a complex oxide based pyrochlores having a chemical formula of A2 B2 O7 configured to directly convert heat into electricity and operate and function at a higher temperature without oxidizing in air. The complex oxide based pyrochlores are mixed with cation at B-site.

The present invention relates to a method for manufacturing a thermoelectric half-cell which utilises the metallization for obtaining both the electric and thermal contact required to form a functional thermoelectric cell.

Processing methods may be performed to form a pixel isolation structure on a semiconductor substrate. The method may include forming a pixel isolation bilayer on the semiconductor substrate. The pixel isolation bilayer may include a high-k layer overlying a stopping layer. The method may include forming a lithographic mask on a first region of the pixel isolation bilayer. The method may also include etching the pixel isolation bilayer external to the first region. The etching may reveal the semiconductor substrate. The etching may form the pixel isolation structure.

According to one embodiment, a power generation element includes a first conductive region including a first surface, a plurality of second conductive regions, and a plurality of insulating structure regions. The second conductive regions are arranged along the first surface. A gap is provided between the second conductive regions and the first surface. One of the structure regions is provided between one of the second conductive regions and the first surface. An other one of the structure regions is provided between an other one of the second conductive regions and the first surface.

A tactile representation device is provided. The tactile representation device includes a substrate and a semiconductor temperature control assembly disposed on the substrate. The substrate includes a plurality of deformable regions and a plurality of node regions that are alternately disposed in a first direction, wherein the deformable regions are deformable but the node regions are not deformable. The semiconductor temperature control assembly includes a plurality of semiconductor temperature control units. Each of the semiconductor temperature control units includes a hot terminal electrode, a P-side electrode, an N-side electrode, a P-type semiconductor, and an N-type semiconductor. Each of the hot terminal electrodes is disposed in each of the deformable regions, and each of the P-side electrodes and each of the N-side electrodes are disposed in each of the node regions.

Provided is a silicide-based alloy material with which environmental load can be reduced and high thermoelectric conversion performance can be obtained.

Provided is a silicide-based alloy material including silicon and ruthenium as main components, in which when the contents of silicon and ruthenium are denoted by Si and Ru, respectively, the atomic ratio of the devices constituting the alloy material satisfies the following:

45 atm %≤Si/(Ru+Si)≤70 atm %

30 atm %≤Ru/(Ru+Si)≤55 atm %.

According to one embodiment, a power generation element, includes a first conductive layer, a second conductive layer, and a crystal member. A direction from the second conductive layer toward the first conductive layer is along a first direction. The crystal member is provided between the first conductive layer and the second conductive member. The crystal member includes a crystal pair. The crystal pair includes a first crystal part and a second crystal part. A second direction from the first crystal part toward the second crystal part crosses the first direction. A gap is provided between the first crystal part and the second crystal part. The first conductive layer is electrically connected to the first crystal part. The second conductive layer is electrically connected to the second crystal part.

The device presented in this patent application is a solid state “thermoelectric device”, which receives energy from an external heat source by direct contact or by radiation (input), and uses part of that thermal energy to generate electrical energy by radiation (output). This can be used to compose a thermoelectric generator, and/or as a “thermo electronic regulator” in an electronic circuit. Transducers with the same structure and that operate in a similar way, that is, they receive energy from an external source of electromagnetic radiation, or by direct contact with a heat source and transform it by radiation into electrical energy, they are the elements that make up the photovoltaic cells (photoelectric effect) and thermionic generators (thermionic effect). On the other hand, electronic devices that regulate the flow of current in a certain circuit such as transistors and some type of diode in particular, are composed of materials that interact with each other in a similar way to those used by this thermoelectric device, but are generally powered by electrical energy.

A superconductor junction includes a normal metal layer having a first side and a second side, an insulating layer overlying the second side of the normal metal layer, and a first superconductor layer formed of a first superconductor material that overlies a side of the insulating layer opposite the side that overlies the normal metal layer. The superconductor junction further includes a second superconductor layer formed of a second superconductor material with a first side overlying a side of the first superconductor material opposite the side that overlies the insulating layer. The second superconductor material has a higher diffusion coefficent than the first superconductor material and/or the second superconductor material has a lower recombination coefficent than the first superconductor metal layer. A normal metal layer quasiparticle trap is coupled to a second side of the second superconductor layer.

A thermoelectric module including at least a first and a second thermoelectric element comprising a thermoelectric semiconductor; an electrode connecting the first and second thermoelectric elements; and at least a first and a second joining layer, the first joining layer positioned between the first thermoelectric element and the electrode, and the second joining layer positioned between the second thermoelectric element and the electrode; and at least a first and a second barrier layer including an alloy including Cu, Mo and Ti, the first barrier layer positioned between the first thermoelectric element and the first joining layer, and the second barrier layer positioned between the second thermoelectric element and the second joining layer. The module prevents heat diffusion of the material of the joining layer, preventing the oxidation and deformation of the thermoelectric element under high temperature environment, and exhibiting improved operational stability due to excellent adhesion to a thermoelectric element.