Origami inspired thermoelectric generators by printing and folding

The transition towards an energy-sustainable society is the key challenge for the engineering sciences in the 21st century. This proposal addresses the energy supply for the future trillion sensor devices that form the backbone of our digitized society and it addresses the possibility to recover huge amounts of low-temperature waste heat in industry. Energy-harvesting from low-temperature environmental heat via thermoelectric generators (TEG) is a versatile and maintenance-free solution for both challenges. A prerequisite, however, is a cost-effective and scalable materials and manufacturing strategy for such TEGs. ORTHOGONAL will explore the devices using novel printable thermoelectric nanocomposite materials and it will tackle the fabrication challenges of printed TEGs based on ultrathin (< 2 µm) polymeric foils. We will explore n-type and p-type inorganic printable nanomaterials with high efficiencies and will use them for large area 2D printing on ultrathin substrates. By using photonic sintering, we will nano-solder the thin TEG films. The TEGs will then subsequently be fabricated by an origami-inspired folding process. A customized machine will be designed and constructed to allow for an automated folding of the 2D foil into the desired 3D geometry. As demonstrators, the project will realize TEG powered autonomous sensor nodes and a heat exchanger including a large area TEG. The work will build on my more than 30 years of experience in solid state semiconductor devices, several key patents from my group, and our recent proof-of-concepts for the thermoelectric materials and the device design. The design and fabrication principles of ORTHOGONAL will also be of use of other large-area electronic devices, e.g., X-ray detectors, THz-metamaterials, and piezoelectric transceivers.