Tohoku University

Nec Corporation

Keio University

Kenichi Uchida

Eiji Saitoh

Akihiro Kirihara

Yosuke Kajiwara

Hiroyuki Endoh

Takashi Manako

Yasunobu Nakamura

Shinichi Yorozu

Kazuya Harii

Kazuya Ando

Hiroyasu Nakayama

An object of the present invention is to provide a low-cost thermoelectric converter element having high productivity and excellent conversion efficiency. A thermoelectric converter element according to the present invention includes a substrate, a magnetic filmprovided on the substratewith a certain magnetization direction A and formed of a polycrystalline magnetically insulating material, and an electrodeprovided on the magnetic filmwith a material exhibiting a spin-orbit interaction. When a temperature gradient is applied to the magnetic film, a spin current is generated so as to flow from the magnetic filmtoward the electrode. A current I is generated in a direction perpendicular to the magnetization direction A of the magnetic filmby the inverse spin Hall effect in the electrode

Thermoelectric converter element, method of manufacturing thermoelectric converter element, and thermoelectric conversion method

A thermoelectric conversion apparatus includes a substrate, and a power generation part formed on the substrate for generating a thermoelectric power. The power generation part includes a magnetic layer with magnetization and an electrode layer including a material exhibiting a spin-orbit interaction and formed on the magnetic layer. The substrate and the power generation part have flexibility, respectively. The thermoelectric conversion apparatus further includes a cover layer having flexibility and formed on the substrate so as to cover at least the power generation part. The magnetic layer includes magnetic layer pieces separated in a layer direction with a gap portion interposed between the magnetic layer pieces.

Thermoelectric conversion apparatus

A thermoelectric conversion apparatus has a substrate and a power generation part. The power generation part has a magnetic layer with magnetization and an electrode layer made of a material exhibiting a spin-orbit interaction and formed on the magnetic layer. The substrate and the power generation part have flexibility. This thermoelectric conversion apparatus further has a cover layer having flexibility and formed on the substrate so as to cover at least the power generation part.

The thermoelectric conversion efficiency of a thermoelectric conversion device is increased by increasing the figure of merit of a spin-Seebeck effect element. An inverse spin-Hall effect material is provided to at least one end of a thermal spin-wave spin current generating material made of a magnetic dielectric material so that a thermal spin-wave spin current is converted to generate a voltage in the above described inverse spin-Hall effect material when there is a temperature gradient in the above described thermal spin-wave spin current generating material and a magnetic field is applied using a magnetic field applying means.

Thermoelectric conversion device

A concrete means for making transmission over long distances possible using a spin-wave spin current is provided in a spintronic device and an information transmitting method. At least one metal electrode made of any of Pt, Au, Pd, Ag, Bi, alloys of these, or elements having an f-orbital are provided on top of a magnetic dielectric layer and, so that spin-wave spin current&#x2014;pure spin current exchange is carried out at the interface between the above described magnetic dielectric layer and the above described metal electrode.

Spintronic device and information transmitting method

The invention relates to a spin current thermal conversion device and a thermoelectric conversion device, with which a spin current is thermally generated, and its concrete application is realized. A temperature gradient creating means which creates a temperature gradient in a thermal spin current generating member is provided in a thermal spin current generating member made of either a ferromagnetic member or a conductive member containing a ferromagnetic substance.

Growing community of inventors

Miyagi, Japan

Kenichi Uchida