Thermoelectric power generators are promising for clean energy production
through converting the waste heat to electricity in environmentally friendly
ways without any noise or pollutants. This work reports a facile method to
synthesize Bi2Te3 nanoflakes with an investigation of their structural, optical,
and thermoelectric properties. Various techniques such as X-ray diffraction,
field emission scanning electron microscope, transmission electron microscope,
and energy dispersive spectroscopy are used to characterize the
synthesized compound. The results confirmed that the nanoflakes crystallize
in a rhombohedral structure with an average diameter and thickness31.2
and 27 nm, respectively. A narrow optical band gap of 0.43 eV is determined
for the prepared nanoflakes confirming the potential of employing the
nanoflakes in optoelectronic applications. The results of the thermoelectric
measurements imply that the synthesized nanoflakes have high power factor
values at high temperatures compared to those previously reported for the
same compound by other research groups. The power factor values make the
synthesized nanoflakes promising candidate for thermoelectric applicatio