La0.95Sr0.05CoO3:: An efficient room-temperature thermoelectric oxide

We present measurements of electrical resistivity, thermal conductivity, and thermopower of polycrystalline Sr-doped LaCoO3 with composition La0.95Sr0.05CoO3. Our data show that the investigated compound exhibits a very respectable room-temperature thermoelectric figure of merit value of 0.18. Our results not only show that oxides are promising candidates for thermoelectric cooling applications, but also point toward the need for careful theoretical calculations that will serve as a guide in producing the next generation of thermoelectric materials. (C) 2004 American Institute of Physics.