AX II4X III5Te12 (A = Rb, Cs; XII = Mn, Zn, Cd; XIII = Ga, In): quaternary semiconducting tellurides with very low thermal conductivities

Abstract

The discovery of novel materials with very low thermal conductivity is paramount to improving the efficiency of thermoelectric devices. Here we present a series of quaternary semiconducting tellurides AX^II₄X^III₅Te₁₂ (A = Rb, Cs; X^II = Mn, Zn, Cd; X^III = Ga, In) with three-dimensional (3D) diamond-like frameworks (DLFs) and they exhibit a very low thermal conductivity (ca. 0.26–0.42 W m⁻¹ K⁻¹) around 800 K.