Phononic Devices is building thermoelectric modules that use electricity to provide cooling power. Such modules essentially replace the flow of refrigerants through vapor compression cooling systems with the flow of electrons through a chip.
Solid-state cooling would eliminate a system’s moving parts and its refrigerants, which are usually potent greenhouse gases. And with the flip side of the thermoelectric effect, in which heat can be harvested to produce electricity, engineers could make use of waste heat in everything from car engines to factories.
Learn more from IEEE.