Thermoelectric Properties of Silicon Microchannel Plates Structures

We have fabricated silicon microchannel plates (MCPs) by photo-assisted electrochemical etching (PAECE) and determined the thermoelectric properties by measuring the Seebeck coefficient of the samples. The samples are composed of regular arrayed lattices with a width of about 5 μm and spacing of about 1 μm. The Seebeck coefficient along the edge of the lattice is 466 μV/K. The silicon MCPs are potential materials for power generation and refrigeration. After oxidation from 30 minutes to 70 minutes and removing the silicon dioxide layer by buffered hydrofluoric acid, the samples show an improved coefficient as high as 1019 μV/K after repeating oxidation and etching 5 times. Our results show that the Seebeck coefficient increases when the wall of the silicon MCPs is thinned.