Thermoelectricity is the conversion from temperature differentials to electricity or vice versa. Lightning strikes during a night-time thunderstorm. ...

It is accomplished in one of several ways:

1. The Peltier-Seebeck effect
2. Thermionic emission
3. Indirectly through magnetohydrodynamics (see Rubidium).

The conducting material is not limited to solids with electrons as charge carriers. Such effects can be observed in conductors where the carriers are ions, or in semiconductors where the carriers are holes or electrons. The Peltier-Seebeck effect, or thermoelectric effect, is the direct conversion of heat differentials to electric voltage and vice versa. ... Thermionic emission (archaically known as the Edison effect) is the flow of electrons from a metal or metal oxide surface, caused by thermal vibrational energy overcoming the electrostatic forces holding electrons to the surface. ... Magnetohydrodynamics (MHD) (magnetofluiddynamics or hydromagnetics) is the academic discipline which studies the dynamics of electrically conducting fluids. ... General Name, Symbol, Number rubidium, Rb, 37 Chemical series alkali metals Group, Period, Block 1, 5, s Appearance grey white Atomic mass 85. ... The electron is a fundamental subatomic particle that carries an electric charge. ... A semiconductor is a solid whose electrical conductivity can be controlled over a wide range, either permanently or dynamically. ...

It is the principle behind heat engines, heat pumps, thermocouples, thermal diodes, and solid-state refrigerators, etc. A heat engine performs the conversion of heat energy to work by exploiting the temperature gradient between a hot source and a cold sink. Heat is transferred to the sink from the source, and in this process some of the heat is converted into work. ... A diagram of a simple heat pumps vapor-compression refrigeration cycle: 1) condenser, 2) expansion valve, 3) evaporator, 4) compressor. ... In electronics, thermocouples are a widely used type of temperature sensor and can also be used as a means to convert thermal potential difference into electric potential difference. ... A thermal diode is a heat engine which converts a heat difference directly into electric power. ... It has been suggested that Freezer be merged into this article or section. ...

It can be used to electrically measure temperature, or to generate electric power from a heat source. Fig. ...

The heat from radioactive decay has been used to electrically power several space probes, in the form of radioisotope thermoelectric generators. It has been suggested that this article or section be merged into Unmanned space mission. ... // A radioisotope thermoelectric generator (RTG) is a simple electrical generator which obtains its power from radioactive decay. ...

Thermoelectric power sometimes refers to this direct conversion, but usually just refers to a power plant which converts heat into electricity, through the use of steam turbines or similar devices. The thermopower, or thermoelectric power, or Seebeck coefficient of a material is a measure of the magnitude of an induced thermoelectric voltage in response to a temperature difference across that material. ... A rotor of a modern steam turbine, used in a power plant A steam turbine is a mechanical device that extracts thermal energy from pressurized steam, and converts it into useful mechanical work. ...

Batteryless radio

Thermoelectricity was widely used in the remote parts of the Soviet Union from the 1920s to power radios. The equipment comprised some bi-metal rods, one end of which could be inserted into the fireplace to get hot with the other end left out in the cold. The 1920s was a decade sometimes referred to as the Jazz Age or the Roaring Twenties, usually applied to America. ... thermocouple and Peltier_Seebeck effect. ...

Kerosine radio made in Moscow for use in rural areas, this all-wave radio is reportedly powered by the kerosene lamp hanging above it. A group of thermocouples is heated internally to 570 degrees by the flame. Fins cool the outside to about 90 degrees. The temperature differential generates enough current to operate the low-drain reciever.[1]

Another way of achieving the same function is a Clockwork radio. A clockwork radio is a radio that is powered by clockwork wind-up mechanism driving an internal generator, rather than batteries or solar cells or mains electricity or thermoelectrics. ...

External links

• International Thermoelectric Society
• Thermoelectric News
• RMCybernetics - Electric Minerals The electric properties of minerals. How to make a Dehumidifier using the Thermoelectric Effect.