Manipulating Band Structure through Reconstruction of Binary Metal Sulfide for High-Performance Thermoelectrics in Solution-Synthesized Nanostructured Bi₁₃S₁₈I₂

Reconstructing canonical binary compounds by inserting a third agent can significantly modify their electronic and phonon structures. Therefore, it has inspired the semiconductor communities in various fields. Introducing this paradigm will potentially revolutionize thermoelectrics as well. Using a solution synthesis, Bi₂S₃ was rebuilt by adding disordered Bi and weakly bonded I. These new structural motifs and the altered crystal symmetry induce prominent changes in electrical and thermal transport, resulting in a great enhancement of the figure of merit. The as-obtained nanostructured Bi₁₃S₁₈I₂ is the first non-toxic, cost-efficient, and solution-processable n-type material with z T=1.0.