Growth and Thermoelectric Properties of Cd-Doped InSb Crystals

doi:10.16553/j.cnki.issn1000-985x.2026.0022

Abstract

Abstract: As an important group III-V narrow bandgap compound semiconductor，InSb crystals have been widely used in infrared detection and imaging，magnetoresistive sensing and high-speed electronic devices owing to their excellent optoelectronic and transport properties. Thermoelectric technology enables direct conversion between heat and electricity based on the Seebeck and Peltier effects. Despite their mature applications in traditional electronic fields，the potential of InSb crystals in thermoelectric energy conversion has not been fully explored. Therefore，optimizing the thermoelectric property of InSb via elemental doping is of great significance. This work systematically investigates the growth，crystal structure，thermoelectric property，and mechanical properties of Cd-doped InSb crystals. Three types of crystals，including InSb，In_0.99Cd_0.01Sb，and In_0.9Cd_0.1Sb，were grown by the Bridgman method. X-ray diffraction （XRD） analysis shows that the powder diffraction patterns agree well with the standard data，confirming a cubic zinc-blende structure with a space group of F43m. XRD pattern of the cleaved surface exhibits a single diffraction peak corresponding to the （220） plane，indicating excellent single-crystal characteristics. Scanning electron microscopy combined with energy-dispersive spectroscopy mapping confirms the homogeneous distribution of In，Sb，and doped Cd elements within the crystals. Raman spectroscopy reveals that the characteristic peaks of InSb exhibit a gradual redshift with increasing Cd doping concentration，further confirming the effective incorporation of Cd into the InSb lattice. Cd doping also induces a transition in the conduction type from N-type to P-type，which is mainly attributed to the introduction of hole carriers via Cd substitution at In sites. The pristine InSb crystal exhibits a power factor of 0.43 μW·cm^-1·K^-2 at room temperature. Upon Cd doping，the room-temperature power factor is significantly enhanced，reaching 5.9 and 5.2 μW·cm^-1·K^-2 for the In_0.99Cd_0.01Sb and In_0.9Cd_0.1Sb crystals，respectively. At 723 K，the thermoelectric power factor of the InSb sample increases from 8.8 μW·cm^-1·K^-2 to 12.7 μW·cm^-1·K^-2 by Cd doping. Meanwhile，defect scattering introduced by Cd incorporation enhances phonon scattering，leading to a significant reduction in thermal conductivity with increasing Cd concentration. The intrinsic InSb crystal exhibits a room-temperature thermal conductivity of 16.4 W·m^-1·K^-1. The thermal conductivity decreases to 8.8 W·m^-1·K^-1 for the In_0.9Cd_0.1Sb crystal at room temperature and further decreases to 3.4 W·m^-1·K^-1 at 723 K. Due to the synergistic optimization of the electrical and thermal transport properties induced by Cd doping，a thermoelectric figure of merit （zT） of 0.19 is achieved at 723 K in the In_0.9Cd_0.1Sb crystal，representing an enhancement of approximately 46% compared to that of the pristine InSb crystal. Mechanical testing indicates that an increase in Cd doping concentration leads to a reduction in the maximum indentation depth of the crystal，with the hardness increasing from 2.95 GPa to 3.15 GPa and the elastic modulus increasing from 56.36 GPa to 73.54 GPa. This work provides a feasible doping strategy for improving the thermoelectric performance of InSb crystals and demonstrates that Cd-doped InSb exhibits promising potential for thermoelectric applications in the medium-temperature range.

Key words: InSb crystal; Cd doping; Bridgman method; thermoelectric property; mechanical property

CLC Number:

SHI Qianhui, CHEN Hao, LIN Siqi, YUE Xiaofei, LIU Xuechao, JIN Min. Growth and Thermoelectric Properties of Cd-Doped InSb Crystals[J]. Journal of Synthetic Crystals, 2026, 55(6): 858-866.

Figures/Tables 6

Fig.1 Schematic diagram of InSb crystal growth by the Bridgman method （a） and temperature profile of the furnace （b）

Fig.2 Characterization of crystal growth results. InSb （a），In0.99Cd0.01Sb （b） and In0.9Cd0.1Sb （c） crystals and the cleavage planes；（d） XRD pattern of polycrystalline powder；（e） XRD pattern of the （220） cleavage planes；（f） SEM image and EDS elemental distribution of the In0.99Cd0.01Sb crystal

Fig.3 Raman spectra of the InSb，In0.99Cd0.01Sb and In0.9Cd0.1Sb crystals

Fig.4 Relationship of electrical resistivity （a），Seebeck coefficient （b），power factor （c），carrier concentration （d） and Hall mobility （e），（f） with temperature

Fig.5 Relationship of thermal conductivity （a） and thermoelectric figure of merit （b） with temperature

Fig.6 Nanoindentation load-displacement curve （a） and elastic modulus and hardness （b）

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