- 1). Use a bucky-paper device. Single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWCNTs) absorb light in the infrared (IR) region of the spectrum and convert it to heat. They have a large Seebeck coefficient, which means they can convert much of the heat into electricity.
- 2). Create a demo device to enhance your scale-up. Create a CVD-grown array measuring 2 nm diameter and 0.36 mm length. Use 50 pairs of p- and n-type elements. P-type elements can be SWCNT sheets and n-type elements can be polyethyleneimine (PEI)-coated SWCNT sheets.
- 3). Suspend the small strips of bucky-papers and expose them to NIR (near infrared radiation) with a wavelength of 980 nm. Record the output voltage. It should show a good corresponding linear relationship with NIR power density. This illustrates the application of SWCNT sheets as good IR sensors. Look for a magnitude of around 12.6 micro-volts per milli-watt cm squared.
- 4). Fabricate and use an opto-electronic power source by integrating a large quantity of the sheets (both p- and n-type) in series to convert the incident light into electricity. This can be done by using an integrated device that outputs a macroscopic (large) voltage that sums over the output of each individual p- and n-type element. You should aim for a voltage of 0.1 V, but by adding more elements, this value can be increased.
- 5). Optimize the sheet structure by eliminating metallic tubing and incorporating thermoelectric materials to enhance the performance of the device.
- 6). Enhance the value of the Seebeck coefficient to really optimize the performance of your electricity generation. This is currently the only setback in developing the technology into a viable, industrial process. Consider the possibility of enhancing the figure of merit, which is related to the coefficient. Figure of merit takes into account the electrical conductivity, the thermal conductivity and the Seebeck coefficient or "thermopower."
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