Article Observation of the transverse Thomson effect

Atsushi Takahagi ORCID ; Takamasa Hirai SAMURAI ORCID ; Abdulkareem Alasli ORCID ; Sang J. Park ORCID ; Hosei Nagano ORCID ; Ken-ichi Uchida SAMURAI ORCID

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Atsushi Takahagi, Takamasa Hirai, Abdulkareem Alasli, Sang J. Park, Hosei Nagano, Ken-ichi Uchida. Observation of the transverse Thomson effect. Nature Physics. 2025, 21 (8), . https://doi.org/10.1038/s41567-025-02936-3

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(abstract)

The Thomson effect refers to volumetric heating or cooling in a conductor when a charge current and a temperature gradient are applied in the same direction. Similarly, it is expected that a conductor will be heated or cooled when a charge current, a temperature gradient and a magnetic field are applied in orthogonal directions. This phenomenon, referred to as the transverse Thomson effect, has not been experimentally observed. Here we report the observation of this effect in a semimetallic Bi88Sb12 alloy with thermoelectric imaging. We can switch between heating or cooling by changing the direction of the magnetic field. Our experiments and analyses reveal the essential difference between the conventional and transverse Thomson effects. Whereas the former depends sorely on the temperature derivative of the Seebeck coefficient, the latter depends on the temperature derivative and the magnitude of the Nernst coefficient. The observation of the transverse Thomson effect provides a new concept for active thermal management technologies.

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  • In Copyright

    This version of the article has been accepted for publication, after peer review (when applicable) and is subject to Springer Nature’s AM terms of use, but is not the Version of Record and does not reflect post-acceptance improvements, or any corrections. The Version of Record is available online at: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41567-025-02936-3

Keyword: Thermoelectrics, Transverse Thomson effect, Lock-in thermography

Date published: 2025-06-26

Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC

Journal:

  • Nature Physics (ISSN: 17452473) vol. 21 issue. 8

Funding:

  • MEXT | JST | Exploratory Research for Advanced Technology JPMJER2201
  • MEXT | Japan Society for the Promotion of Science 19H02585
  • MEXT | Japan Society for the Promotion of Science 22H04965
  • MEXT | Japan Society for the Promotion of Science 23KJ1122
  • NEC Corporation

Manuscript type: Author's version (Accepted manuscript)

MDR DOI: https://doi.org/10.48505/nims.5635

First published URL: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41567-025-02936-3

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Updated at: 2025-08-18 14:59:49 +0900

Published on MDR: 2025-12-26 08:19:17 +0900

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