Solar energy conversion offers a solution to help mitigate global warming

The dotted white line shows a nanodot inclusion in the crystalline structure of the thermoelectric material Ag_0.86Pb₁₈SbTe₂₀, seen in high resolution transmission electron microscopy. Controlling nanoscale inclusions like this one will enable the next-generation of thermoelectric materials with significantly higher efficiency for converting the sun’s heat to electricity. The inclusion is about 10 nm in diameter. From Eric Quarez, Kuei-Fang Hsu, Robert Pcionek, N. Frangis, E. K. Polychroniadis, and Mercouri G. Kanatzidis, JACS 127, 9177 (2005). Image courtesy of M. Kanatzidis.