Enhanced phonon-drag by nanoscale design of homoepitaxial \hbox{${\hat{I}}^2$-Ga${}_2$O${}_3$}

Abstract

Phonon drag may be harnessed for thermoelectric generators and devices. Here, we demonstrate the geometric control of the phonon-drag contribution to the thermopower. In nanometer-thin electrically conducting ${\hat{I}}^2$-Ga${}_2$O${}_3$ films homoepitaxially-grown on insulating substrates it is enhanced from -0,4 mV/K to up to -3 mV/K at 100 K by choice of the film thickness. Analysis of the temperature-dependent Seebeck coefficients reveal that a crossover from three-dimensional to quasi-two-dimensional electron-phonon interaction occurs for film thicknesses below 75~nm. The ratio of phonon-phonon to electron-phonon relaxation times in these confined structures is $10$ times larger than that of bulk. Generally the phonon drag can be tuned depending on the relations between the phonon-drag interaction length $\hat{I}{»}_{\text{PD}}$, the phonon mean free path $\hat{I}»$ and the film thickness $d$. Phonon drag can be enhanced for $\hat{I}{»}_{\text{PD}}\gg \hat{I}»>d$.

8 pages, 4 figures