Electrodeposition and Characterization of Bismuth Telluride Nanowires

In this work, we report thermoelectric measurements on electroplated bismuth telluride nanowires. Porous polycarbonate membranes, obtained by ion-track irradiation lithography, were chosen as electroplating templates. Bismuth telluride nanowires were achieved in acidic media under potentiostatic conditions at −100 mV versus saturated silver chloride electrode. The filling ratio of the pores was increased to 80% by adding dimethyl sulfoxide to the electrolyte. Whatever the experimental conditions, the nanowires were polycrystalline in the rhombohedral phase of Bi2Te3. Finally, the power output of arrays of bismuth telluride nanowires was analyzed as a function of load resistance. The results were strongly dependent on the internal resistance, which can be significantly reduced by the presence of dimethyl sulfoxide during electroplating.