17. Thermoelectric Cooling cu（17所示。）.pdfVIP

Part C: Electronics Cooling Methods in Industry 17. Thermoelectric Cooling 17.1 Historical Background Although commercial thermoelectric modules were not available until almost 1960, the physical principles upon which modern thermoelectric coolers are based actually date back to the early 1800s. The first important discovery relating to thermoelectricity occurred in 1821 when German scientist Thomas Seebeck found that an electric current would flow continuously in a closed circuit made up of two dissimilar metals, provided that the junctions of the metals were maintained at two different temperatures. Seebeck did not actually comprehend the scientific basis for his discovery, however, and falsely assumed that flowing heat produced the same effect as flowing electric current. In 1834, a French watchmaker and part-time physicist, Jean Peltier, while investigating the Seebeck Effect, found that there was an opposite phenomenon where by thermal energy could be absorbed at one dissimilar metal junction and discharged at the other junction when an electric current flowed within the closed circuit. Twenty years later, William Thomson (eventually known as Lord Kelvin) issued a comprehensive explanation of the Seebeck and Peltier Effects and described their relationship. At the time, however, these phenomena were still considered to be mere laboratory curiosities and were without practical application. In the 1930s, Russian scientists began studying some of the earlier thermoelectric work in an effort to construct power generators for use at remote locations throughout their country. This Russian interest in thermoelectricity eventually caught the attention of the rest of the world and inspired the development of practical thermoelectric modules. Todays thermoelectric coolers make use of modern semiconductor