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[[Vol. 62]Thermoelectric Device Combined with Wavelength-selective Thermal Emitter Generates Continuous Power, Day and Night _ WPI-MANA.pdf](https://mdr.nims.go.jp/filesets/72e55d43-f28a-4306-8ccd-b96b4a63ed5e/download)

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International Center for Materials Nanoarchitectonics (WPI-MANA)

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[[Research Highlights Vol.62] Thermoelectric Device Combined with Wavelength-selective Thermal Emitter Generates Continuous Power, Day and Night](https://mdr.nims.go.jp/datasets/86c4e9e1-ac33-425f-90f1-1aee8a043ed1)

## Fulltext

2022/03/31 16:21 Thermoelectric Device Combined with Wavelength-selective Thermal Emitter Generates Continuous Power, Day and Night | …https://www.nims.go.jp/mana/research/highlights/vol62.html 1/3Previous  Index  NextResearch Highlights[Vol. 62]Thermoelectric Device Combined with Wavelength-selective Thermal EmitterGenerates Continuous Power, Day and Night16 Nov, 2020A team at MANA has created a thermoelectric device that can generate powercontinuously, 24 hours a day, without the problem of voltage dropping to zero whennight falls and temperatures drop.Thermoelectric devices have been attracting attention for energy harvesting, especially those thatrequire independent power supply, such as outdoor sensors and monitors. Such devices, which aremore ubiquitous than photovoltaics, only require temperature difference between its top andbottom to generate power.However, thermoelectric devices placed outside experience reversal of voltage when temperatureschange -- they flip the sign of their voltage, and the electrical current changes its direction of flow,so the voltage drops to zero and power generation ceases.To address this problem, the MANA team built their device with a wavelength-selective emitter thatcontinually radiates heat, so that its surface temperature is always cooler than the bottom side ofthe thermoelectric module, which is placed below the selective emitter.The device consists of a 100-nanometer-thick aluminum film on the bottom of a glass substrate.https://www.nims.go.jp/mana/research/highlights/vol61.htmlhttps://www.nims.go.jp/mana/research/highlights/index.htmlhttps://www.nims.go.jp/mana/research/highlights/vol63.html2022/03/31 16:21 Thermoelectric Device Combined with Wavelength-selective Thermal Emitter Generates Continuous Power, Day and Night | …https://www.nims.go.jp/mana/research/highlights/vol62.html 2/3Because the top of the device is cooler than the bottom, the temperature difference createsconstant voltage all day and night.The team found that using a selective emitter eliminates the problem of voltage dropping to zeroduring environmental changes in temperature.As team leader Satoshi Ishii noted, “Cooling can be used to create a temperature differencecompared to the ambient temperature, and because radiative cooling takes place day and night,thermoelectric generation is always possible.”The larger the temperature difference, the larger the voltage. Using the heat on the underside ofthe device increases the temperature difference between the bottom and top, so heat from themounting surface helps boost power output as well.This research was carried out by Satoshi Ishii (Principal Researcher, Photonics Nano-EngineeringGroup) and his collaborators.Reference“Radiative cooling for continuous thermoelectric power generation in day and night”Satoshi Ishii, Thang Duy Dao and Tadaaki NagaoJournal: Applied Physics Letters 117 [1] 013901 (July 7, 2020)DOI : 10.1063/5.0010190■ Related News articlesSatoshi Ishii, Principal Researcher and his colleague's research announced as a press release inAmerican Institute of Physics (AIP) (July 9, 2020)Satoshi Ishii, Principal Researcher Appears in Newspapers (September 2, 2020)■ MANA E-BULLETINhttps://www.nims.go.jp/mana/ebulletin/AffiliationsInternational Center for Materials Nanoarchitectonics (WPI-MANA), National Institute for MaterialsScience (NIMS), Namiki 1-1, Tsukuba, Ibaraki 305-0044, JapanContact informationInternational Center for Materials Nanoarchitectonics(WPI-MANA)National Institute for Materials Science1-1 Namiki, Tsukuba, Ibaraki 305-0044 JapanPhone: +81-29-860-4710E-mail: mana-pr[AT]ml.nims.go.jphttps://samurai.nims.go.jp/profiles/sishii?locale=enhttps://samurai.nims.go.jp/profiles/sishii?locale=enhttps://samurai.nims.go.jp/profiles/nagao_tadaaki?locale=enhttps://doi.org/10.1063/5.0010190https://www.nims.go.jp/mana/news_room/news/2020070901.htmlhttps://www.nims.go.jp/mana/news_room/media/2020090201.htmlhttps://www.nims.go.jp/mana/ebulletin/2022/03/31 16:21 Thermoelectric Device Combined with Wavelength-selective Thermal Emitter Generates Continuous Power, Day and Night | …https://www.nims.go.jp/mana/research/highlights/vol62.html 3/3