Tonic thermoelectric materials – powering future technology

Professor Xiao-ming Tao investigates the effect of phase transition on thermoelectric properties of ionic sol-gel materials.

Are you wearing a smartwatch? If so, what powers it? Chances are, it’s charged using mains electricity. But soon your body’s heat could be powering your wearable devices, using thermopower. Thermoelectric (TE) generators convert thermal energy into electricity. However, conventional TE generators typically can’t provide the voltage levels needed in small, wearable devices. But ionic thermoelectric materials (i-TE materials) can. […]

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Nanoparticle coating in heat pipe design for miniaturised cooling

interior of a personal electronic device

Size reduction and increasing processing power are driving forces in the development of modern electronic devices, from portable computers to smartphones and wearable devices. In all these applications, efficient cooling of the electronic components of a device is paramount. By exploiting novel design approaches based on the use of nanoparticle layers, Prof Tomio Okawa and Ms Menglei Wang (The University […]

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