Osaka University's compact and lightweight flexible thermoelectric conversion device

Associate Professor Toru Sugawara of the Institute of Scientific and Industrial Research, Osaka University, and Assistant Professor Kenzo Iwayano of the Graduate School of Engineering, Osaka University, and their colleagues have succeeded in reducing the size and weight of a flexible thermoelectric conversion device in which semiconductor chips are mountedon a flexible substrate. The new device converts the temperature difference between the two ends of the semiconductor into electrical information, and is equipped with a high density of about 200 ultra-small semiconductor chips per square centimeter, achieving high heat recovery efficiency and operational reliability. The flexible device, which was developed in 2018, has been improved. The new device uses semiconductor chips that are precisely aligned in size through ultra-fine processing that exceeds conventional methods. (Photo taken on March 17, 2020, location unknown, credit: Nikkan Kogyo Shimbun / Kyodo News Images)