High-Performance AgSbTe₂ Thermoelectrics: Advances, Challenges, and Perspectives

Environmental-friendless and high-performance thermoelectrics play a significant role in exploring sustainable clean energy. Among them, AgSbTe₂ thermoelectrics, benefiting from the disorder in the cation sublattice and interface scattering from secondary phases of Ag₂Te and Sb₂Te₃, exhibit low thermal conductivity and a maximum figure-of-merit ZT of 2.6 at 573 K via optimizing electrical properties and addressing phase transition issues. Therefore, AgSbTe₂ shows considerable potential as a promising medium-temperature thermoelectric material. Additionally, with the increasing demands for device integration and portability in the information age, the research on flexible and wearable AgSbTe₂ thermoelectrics aligns with contemporary development needs, leading to a growing number of research findings. This work provides a detailed and timely review of AgSbTe₂-based thermoelectrics from materials to devices. Principles and performance optimization strategies are highlighted for the thermoelectric performance enhancement in AgSbTe₂. The current challenges and future research directions of AgSbTe₂-based thermoelectrics are pointed out. This review will guide the development of high-performance AgSbTe₂-based thermoelectrics for practical applications.