Inelastic Electron Transport Through a Carbon Fullerene Junction

Effects of inelastic electron–phonon interactions and different contact geometries on the electron transport and thermoelectric properties of the C60 molecule are studied by Green’s function theory within the framework of polaron transformation. It is seen that the current (Ie) and energy flux (IQ) values with respect to the contact types are ordered as Ie/q(C1) < Ie/q(C6) < Ie/q(C5). The results reveal that the thermopower–energy curves have strictly monotonic character which show the staircase structures. Their stair numbers depend on contact types and presence of electron–phonon interactions. It is shown that the oscillatory behavior of thermal conductance is dramatically dependent on contact types and e–p interactions. Also, the values of the dimensionless figures of merit (ZT0) lie in the interval [0.322 × 10− 7, 0.194 × 10− 3], and effect of contact types is small on the values of ZT0s.