With advancements in thermoelectric technology,
in future, you could run your air conditioner
using sun's heat instead of conventional electricity.
Thermoelectric devices are made from materials
that can convert a temperature difference
into electricity, without requiring any moving
parts — a quality that makes thermoelectrics
a potentially appealing source of electricity.
The phenomenon is reversible: If electricity
is applied to a thermoelectric device, it
can produce a temperature difference.
Today, thermoelectric devices are used for
relatively low-power applications, such as
powering small sensors along oil pipelines,
backing up batteries on space probes, and
cooling minifridges.
But scientists are hoping to design more powerful
thermoelectric devices that will harvest heat
— produced as a byproduct of industrial
processes and combustion engines — and turn
that otherwise wasted heat into electricity.
However, the efficiency of thermoelectric
devices, or the amount of energy they are
able to produce, is currently limited.
Now researchers at MIT have discovered a way
to increase that efficiency threefold, using
“topological” materials, which have unique
electronic properties.
