%0 Journal Article
%T Integrated microthermoelectric coolers with rapid response time and high device reliability
%J -
%D 2018
%R https://doi.org/10.1038/s41928-018-0148-3
%X Microthermoelectric modules are of potential use in fields such as energy harvesting, thermal management, thermal imaging and high-spatial-resolution temperature sensing. In particular, microthermoelectric coolers (¦Ì-TECs)¡ªin which the application of an electric current cools the device¡ªcan be used to manage heat locally in microelectronic circuits. However, a cost-effective ¦Ì-TEC device that is compatible with the modern semiconductor fabrication industry has not yet been developed. Furthermore, the device performance of ¦Ì-TECs in terms of transient responses, cycling reliability and cooling stability has not been adequately assessed. Here we report the fabrication of ¦Ì-TECs that offer a rapid response time of 1£¿ms, reliability of up to 10 million cycles and a cooling stability of more than 1 month at constant electric current. The high cooling reliability and stability of our ¦Ì-TEC module can be attributed to a design of free-standing top contacts between the thermoelectric legs and metallic bridges, which reduces the thermomechanical stress in the devices
%U https://www.nature.com/articles/s41928-018-0148-3