IEC 62830-5:2021

Semiconductor devices - Semiconductor devices for energy harvesting and generation - Part 5: Test method for measuring generated power from flexible thermoelectric devices

IEC 62830-5:2021 specifies the test method for measuring generated electric power from flexible thermoelectric devices under bending conditions. This document provides terms, definitions, symbols, configurations, and test methods that can be used to evaluate and determine the performance of flexible thermoelectric devices. This document also describes the test conditions such as temperature, temperature difference, contact conditions, insulation and bending radius of flexible thermoelectric devices. This document is applicable to flexible energy harvesting devices for flexible semiconductor devices.

Dispositifs à semiconducteurs - Dispositifs à semiconducteurs pour récupération et production d'énergie - Partie 5: Méthode d’essai pour la mesure de la puissance générée par des dispositifs thermoélectriques souples

L’IEC 62830-5:2021 spécifie la méthode d’essai utilisée pour mesurer la puissance électrique générée par des dispositifs thermoélectriques souples dans des conditions de courbure. Le présent document fournit les termes, définitions, symboles, configurations et méthodes d’essai pouvant être utilisés pour évaluer et déterminer les performances des dispositifs thermoélectriques souples. Le présent document décrit également les conditions d’essai, telles que la température, la différence de température, les conditions de contact, l’isolement et le rayon de courbure des dispositifs thermoélectriques souples. Le présent document s’applique aux dispositifs souples de récupération d’énergie pour les dispositifs à semiconducteurs souples.

General Information

• Status: Published
• Publication Date: 20-Jan-2021
• ICS: 31.080.99 - Other semiconductor devices
• Technical Committee: TC 47 - Semiconductor devices
• Drafting Committee: WG 7 - TC 47/WG 7
• Current Stage: PPUB - Publication issued
• Start Date: 21-Jan-2021
• Completion Date: 29-Jan-2021

Standards Content (Sample)

IEC 62830-5 ®
Edition 1.0 2021-01
INTERNATIONAL
STANDARD
NORME
INTERNATIONALE
colour
inside
Semiconductor devices – Semiconductor devices for energy harvesting and
generation –
Part 5: Test method for measuring generated power from flexible thermoelectric
devices
Dispositifs à semiconducteurs – Dispositifs à semiconducteurs pour
récupération et production d’énergie –
Partie 5: Méthode d’essai pour la mesure de la puissance générée par des
dispositifs thermoélectriques souples

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IEC 62830-5 ®
Edition 1.0 2021-01
INTERNATIONAL
STANDARD
NORME
INTERNATIONALE
colour
inside
Semiconductor devices – Semiconductor devices for energy harvesting and

generation –
Part 5: Test method for measuring generated power from flexible thermoelectric

devices
Dispositifs à semiconducteurs – Dispositifs à semiconducteurs pour

récupération et production d’énergie –

Partie 5: Méthode d’essai pour la mesure de la puissance générée par des

dispositifs thermoélectriques souples

INTERNATIONAL
ELECTROTECHNICAL
COMMISSION
COMMISSION
ELECTROTECHNIQUE
INTERNATIONALE
ICS 31.080.99 ISBN 978-2-8322-9285-3

– 2 – IEC 62830-5:2021  IEC 2021
CONTENTS
FOREWORD . 3
1 Scope . 5
2 Normative references . 5
3 Terms and definitions . 5
4 Testing method . 6
4.1 General experimental apparatus . 6
4.2 Application to flexible thermoelectric devices . 8
4.3 Report of results . 11
Annex A (informative) Example of experimental set-up and data for performance of
thermoelectric device . 12
A.1 Schematic experimental set-up for measuring generated power in a
thermoelectric device under the bending condition . 12
A.2 Experimental set-up for measuring contact pressure between a device and
the cold or hot side . 13
A.3 Example of experimentally measured data under different conditions . 14
Bibliography . 16

Figure 1 – General measurement apparatus for generated power in thermoelectric
device . 7
Figure 2 – Experimental apparatus for generated power in flexible thermoelectric
device . 9
Figure 3 – Experimental apparatus for different bending radiuses of curvature. 10
Figure A.1 – Example of experimental schematic diagram and set-up for measuring the
performance parameters of a flexible thermoelectric device under the bending
condition . 13
Figure A.2 – Example of experimental set-up for measuring generated electric power . 14
Figure A.3 – Example of experimental data for generated power from a flexible
thermoelectric device under different conditions. 15

Table 1 – Relation between the bending radius of curvature and typical parts of the
human body . 10
Table 2 – Required parameters to be included in the test report . 11
Table 3 – Experimentally determined parameters for thermoelectric device . 11

INTERNATIONAL ELECTROTECHNICAL COMMISSION
____________
SEMICONDUCTOR DEVICES –
SEMICONDUCTOR DEVICES FOR ENERGY
HARVESTING AND GENERATION –
Part 5: Test method for measuring generated power
from flexible thermoelectric devices

FOREWORD
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International Standard IEC 63830-5 has been prepared by IEC technical committee 47:
Semiconductor devices.
The text of this International Standard is based on the following documents:
FDIS Report on voting
47/2668/FDIS 47/2678/RVD
Full information on the voting for the approval of this International Standard can be found in
the report on voting indicated in the above table.
This document has been drafted in accordance with the ISO/IEC Directives, Part 2.

– 4 – IEC 62830-5:2021  IEC 2021
A list of all parts in the IEC 62830 series, published under the general title Semiconductor
devices – Semiconductor devices for energy harvesting and generation, can be found on the
IEC website.
The committee has decided that the contents of this document will remain unchanged until the
stability date indicated on the IEC website under "http://webstore.iec.ch" in the data related to
the specific document. At this date, the document will be
• reconfirmed,
• withdrawn,
• replaced by a revised edition, or
• amended.
IMPORTANT – The 'colour inside' logo on the cover page of this publication indicates that it
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contents. Users should therefore print this document using a colour printer.

SEMICONDUCTOR DEVICES –
SEMICONDUCTOR DEVICES FOR ENERGY
HARVESTING AND GENERATION –
Part 5: Test method for measuring generated power
from flexible thermoelectric devices

1 Scope
This part of IEC 62830 specifies the test method for measuring generated electric power from
flexible thermoelectric devices under bending conditions. This document provides terms,
definitions, symbols, configurations, and test methods that can be used to evaluate and
determine the performance of flexible thermoelectric devices. This document also describes
the test conditions such as temperature, temperature difference, contact conditions, insulation
and bending radius of flexible thermoelectric devices. This document is applicable to flexible
energy harvesting devices for flexible semiconductor devices.
2 Normative references
There are no normative references in this document.
3 Terms and definitions
For the purposes of this document, the following terms and definitions apply.
ISO and IEC maintain terminological databases for use in standardization at the following
addresses:
• IEC Electropedia: available at http://www.electropedia.org/
• ISO Online browsing platform: available at http://www.iso.org/obp
3.1
thermoelectric generator
device that converts heat (temperature difference) directly into electrical energy, using a
phenomenon called the Seebeck effect
3.2
bending radius
minimum radius, measured to the inside curvature, of a pipe, tube, sheet, cable or hose that
can be bent without kinking damaging it or shortening its life
3.3
Seebeck coefficient
S
magnitude of an induced thermoelectric voltage in response to a temperature difference
across a material, and the entropy per charge carrier in the material
[SOURCE: IEC 62830-2:2017, 3.1]

– 6 – IEC 62830-5:2021  IEC 2021
3.4
thermal conductivity
k
c
at a point fixed in a medium with a temperature field, scalar quantity k characterizing the
c
ability of the medium to transmit heat through a surface element containing that point: φ = −k
c
grad T, where φ is the density of heat flow rate and T is thermodynamic temperature
Note 1 to entry: It appears primarily in Fourier's Law for heat conduction. This value is dependent on temperature.
Thermal resistivity is given by the reciprocal of thermal conductivity.
[SOURCE: IEC 60050-113:2011, 113-04-38, modified – the scalar quantity has been changed
to k and the notes have been replaced by Note 1.]
c
3.5
temperature difference
T
h-c
difference between the cooling and heating sides
3.6
heat input
Q
hot
measured (or calculated) input thermal energy to the thermoelectric device
3.7
dissipated heat
Q
cold
measured (or calculated) dissipated thermal energy from the thermoelectric device
4 Testing method
4.1 General experimental apparatus
The general principle for the test set-up to measure the amount of power generation from
thermoelectric devices, especially focusing on flexible thermoelectric devices, is described. In
general, the thermoelectric device generates electric energy due to the temperature
difference between one surface of the device and the other surface. Hence, in order to
characterize the performance of the device, the temperature of both the cooling and heating
sides in an experimental set-up should be maintained consistently. The general schematic
diagram of the thermoelectric device, including the experimental set-up to measure the
generated power, is illustrated in Figure 1. An explanation about the commonly used formulas
related to the thermoelectric device and the experimental set-up is also included. The basic
principle of the measurement method for both rigid and flexible devices is the same but the
experimental apparatus can be different due to the flexibility of the flexible thermoelectric
device. In order to use the advantage of a flexible thermoelectric device as well as to
investigate its limitations, the performance of the flexible thermoelectric device should be
determined under the bending condition.

Key
1 Heating side (Q )
hot
2 Cooling side (Q )
cold
3 Thermoelectric device for power generation
4 Insulator
5 Electrodes
6 Thermoelectric materials (n: n-type semiconductor, p: p-type semiconductor)
7 Load
Figure 1 – General measurement apparatus
for generated power in thermoelectric device
As shown in Figure 1, when a temperature differential is applied across the faces of the
thermoelectric device, it is possible to generate electrical power in the device. With no load,
the open circuit voltage as measured between two surfaces is
V S×T
(1)
hc−
where
V is the output voltage from the thermoelectric generator, in V;
S is the average Seebeck coefficient, in V/K;
T is the temperature difference across the thermoelectric generator, in K,
h-c
where T = T – T :
h-c h c
T is the surface temperature of the hot side for the generator, in K;
h
T is the surfacce temperature of the cold side for generator, in K.
c
When a load is connected to the thermoelectric generator, the output voltage (V) drops as a
result of the internal generator resistance. The current through the load is
S×T
h-c
I=
(2)
RR+
cL
=
– 8 – IEC 62830-5:2021  IEC 2021
where
I is the thermoelectric generator output current, in A;
R is the average internal resistance of the thermoelectric device, in Ω;

c
R is the load resistance in Ω.
L
The total generated power in the device (P ) is simply
g
P IV×
(3)
g
) is
The total heat input to the thermoelectric generator (Q
hot
(4)
Q=(S×T× I)− 0,5× IR+(K×T )
( )
hot h c h-c
where
Q is the heat input, in W;
hot
K is the thermal conductance of the generator, in W/K.
The efficiency of the generator is
p
g
η= (5)
Q
hot
where
η is the efficiency of the thermoelectric generator.
4.2 Application to flexible thermoelectric devices
Subclause 4.2 gives the detailed experimental apparatus for measuring the generated power
in a thermoelectric device. It focuses on the detailed experimental apparatus for measuring
the generated power from flexible thermoelectric devices under the bending condition. In the
case of flexible thermoelectric devices, the main focus for the measurement is the generated
power under the bending condition. For this purpose, an experimental apparatus to determine
the generated power is illustrated in Figure 2 as an example. As shown in Figure 2, an
experimental apparatus enabling power measurement under the bending condition should be
used in the case of a flexible device. For the cooling side, cooling water, a pump, and
controller are used to maintain the temperature which is set to the cooling side. Electrical
heating with resistance is used to maintain the temperature of the heating side. However, the
method for cooling and heating can be employed according to the sample size and
temperature range.
=
Key
1 Heating side (Q )
hot
)
2 Cooling side (Q
cold
3 Flexible thermoelectric device for power generation
Figure 2 – Experimental apparatus for generated
power in flexible thermoelectric device
In the case of a flexible thermoelectric device, the performance, including efficiency, can
change according to the bending radius of curvature. Hence, different bending radiuses of
curvature can be suggested according to the applications as shown in Figure 3. A detailed
schematic diagram for experimental set-up is described in Clause A.1. For example, in the
case of flexible thermoelectric devices generating power from the temperature difference
between the human body and environmental conditions, different bending radiuses according
to the part of the human body can be summarized in Table 1 as an example.

– 10 – IEC 62830-5:2021  IEC 2021

Key
1. Different radiuses of curvature (cooling side, 30 mm, 60 mm, 90 mm)
2. Cylinder with different radiuses of curvature can be replaced (heating side)
Figure 3 – Experimental apparatus for different bending radiuses of curvature
Table 1 – Relation between the bending radius of curvature
and typical parts of the human body
Parts of human
Thumb Wrist Lower arm Upper arm Hand
body
Bending radius of It depends but it
9 28 40 50
curvature (mm) can be very large

Also, the amount of generated power from flexible thermoelectric devices can be different
according to the temperature, temperature difference, and contact conditions. This is due to
the fact that there should be a discrepancy in the temperature between the surface of the
cooling or heating side and the surface of the device. This discrepancy is dependent on the
contact conditions. The contact conditions between the surface of the device and the surface
of the cooling or heating side can be characterized by measuring the contact pressure in the
case of a rigid type thermoelectric device. In contrast, in the case of a flexible device, the
contact pressure can vary greatly depending on the package type or material of the flexible
thermoelectric device. Hence, it is strongly recommended that the description of the package
type, structure, dimension of the device including the distance between the cooling and
heating side, be included in the report. A detailed experimental set-up for measuring contact
pressure is described in Clause A.2 as an example. Table 2 summarizes those parameters
and Table 3 shows the performance parameters of the thermoelectric device including the
conditions of the experimental set-up. In addition, an example of experimentally determined
generated power under different conditions is presented in Clause A.3.

Table 2 – Required parameters to be included in the test report
Parameters Explanations
– Location of temperature sensing part for both hot and cold
sides
Temperature sensing
– Types of temperature sensor
– Schematic to provide the information about the degree of
Insulation
insulation level
– Application of thermal interface material between device
and hot and cold sides
Thermal interface material
– Types of thermal interface material
– Schematic to provide the information on how the bend test
Bending radius of curvature
is performed
– Information to provide on how the device is pressed down
from heating and cooling sides
Distance between heating and cooling sides – The length of both sides shall be measured through a
radial direction.
(or contact pressure)
– Contact pressure can be determined by dividing the
applied force by the device area

Both the thickness of the sample and the distance between the heating and cooling sides are
important parameters. In general, the generated power is dependent on the contact pressure
between the sample and the heating or cooling side. However, unlike a flat type
thermoelectric device whose surface is rigid, the surface of the flexible thermoelectric device
is easily deformed by the contact pressure. Therefore, in the case of a flexible thermoelectric
device, it is better to report the distance between the hot and cold sides instead of the contact
pressure, including the description of the package structure of the flexible device.
Table 3 – Experimentally determined parameters for thermoelectric device
Electrical parameters Heating Temperature Efficiency
R V I Q T T P /Q
load load load hot c h g hot
4.3 Report of results
The report shall include the following items:
a) date of test;
b) atmospheric conditions during the test;
c) detailed information about the sample (structure, dimension, materials, and types of
package);
d) test apparatus (Table 2);
e) experimentally determined parameters (Table 3).

– 12 – IEC 62830-5:2021  IEC 2021
Annex A
(informative)
Example of experimental set-up and data
for performance of thermoelectric device
A.1 Schematic experimental set-up for measuring generated power in a
thermoelectric device under the bending condition
Figure A.1 shows a schematic diagram of an experimental set-up for measuring the electric
power of a flexible thermoelectric device under different experimental conditions and three-
dimensional drawings of the experimental set-up.

a) Schematic diagram of experimental set-up

Key
1 Different radiuses of curvature
(cooling and heating sides, 30 mm, 60 mm, 90 mm)
2 Cylinder with different radiuses of curvature can be replaced (hot side)
b) Schematic of experimental set-up

\
Key
1 Cooling side
2 Heating side
3 Locations of thermocouple for temperature measurement
c) Zoomed-in view
Figure A.1 – Example of experimental schematic diagram and set-up
for measuring the performance parameters of a flexible
thermoelectric device under the bending condition
A.2 Experimental set-up for measuring contact pressure between a device and
the cold or hot side
Figure A.2 shows an experimental set-up for measuring the generated electric power from a
flexible thermoelectric device under the bending condition with different contact pressures,
different contact conditions, different hot temperatures and different radiuses of curvature.
These different experimental conditions can be implemented through the experimental set-up
shown in Figure A.2.
– 14 – IEC 62830-5:2021  IEC 2021

Key
1 Cooling part (by compressor)
2 Heating part (by resistance heating)
3 Contact pressure lever
4 Contact pressure measuring part
a) Experimental set-up
b) Zoomed-in views (right: contact pressure measuring part, left:
cooling and heating parts)
Figure A.2 – Example of experimental set-up for measuring generated electric power
A.3 Example of experimentally measured data under different conditions
The graphs in Figure A.3 show experimental data with different conditions. The graph in the
top left of Figure A.3 shows how different contact pressures between the cooling or heating
part and the flexible thermoelectric device impacts on the performance of the thermoelectric
device (Key 1). The graph in the top right shows how different contacts between the cooling
or heating part and the device such as air, therm
...