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Thermoelectricity at liquid interfaces
Thermoelectricity refers to the direct conversion of a temperature difference into an electric current (Seebeck effect), and vice versa. In conventional solid-state devices, this mechanism is generally limited by the essentially linear relationship between the generated current and the applied temperature difference, as well as by the electronic properties of semiconductor materials, which constrain the maximum size of such systems.
In this seminar, I will present the experimental evidence of a new thermoelectric mechanism occurring at the interface between two electrically conducting fluids subjected to a thermal gradient. This phenomenon results from the nonlinear coupling between the Seebeck effect and turbulent thermal convection developing in the fluid layers. The experiments reveal the spontaneous emergence of intense electric current loops, with current densities about one order of magnitude larger than those found in conventional solid-state thermoelectric devices.
These results illustrate how hydrodynamics can modify the Seebeck effect and open the way to a new class of liquid thermoelectric devices, with potential applications in high-power electronics cooling and energy storage technologies.