Thermopower of Molecular Junction in Harsh Thermal Environments br

Abstract

Molecular junctions can be miniaturized devices for heat-to-electricity conversion application, yet these operate only in mild thermalenvironments (less than 323 K) because thiol, the most widely used anchormoiety for chemisorption of active molecules onto surface of electrode,easily undergoes thermal degradation. N-Heterocyclic carbene (NHC) canbe an alternative to traditional thiol anchor for producing ultrastablethermoelectric molecular junctions. Our experiments showed that theNHC-based molecular junctions withstood remarkably high temperaturesup to 573 K, exhibiting consistent Seebeck effect and thermovoltage up toapproximately|1900 mu V|. Our work advances our understanding ofmolecule-electrode contact in the Seebeck effect, providing a roadmapfor constructing robust and efficient organic thermoelectric devices.