Two-dimensional InSe as a potential thermoelectric material

Thermoelectric properties of monolayer indium selenide (InSe) are investigated by using Boltzmann transport theory and first-principles calculations as a function of Fermi energy and crystal orientation. We find that the maximum power factor of p-type (n-type) monolayer InSe can be as large as 0.049 (0.043) W/K2m at 300 K in the armchair direction. The excellent thermoelectric performance of monolayer InSe is attributed to both its Seebeck coefficient and electrical conductivity. The large Seebeck coefficient originates from the moderate (about 2 eV) bandgap of monolayer InSe as an indirect gap semiconductor, while its large electrical conductivity is due to its unique two-dimensional density of states (DOS), which consists of an almost constant DOS near the conduction band bottom and a sharp peak near the valence band top.