= Thermoelectric cooling
{wiki}
= Peltier cooling
{c}
{synonym}
<Thermoelectric cooling> uses the <Peltier effect> to remove <heat> from a load using electrical <work>. A typical <thermoelectric module> connects many pairs of different <semiconductors> electrically in a <series circuit> and thermally in parallel between two faces. For an idealized pair with $S_p>S_n$, positive <conventional current> crosses n to p at the cold bridge and p to n at the hot return. With common bridge material and isothermal contacts, the intervening metal contributions telescope: the net pair coefficient is $S_p-S_n$. For $N$ identical pairs define the module <Seebeck coefficient> $\alpha=N(S_p-S_n)>0$.
Choose fixed face <temperatures> $T_h\ge T_c>0$, $\Delta T=T_h-T_c$, module <electrical resistance> $R>0$ and open-circuit <thermal conductance> $K>0$. All three module parameters $\alpha,R,K$ are constants over the chosen operating range. Positive $I$ is the orientation absorbing <Peltier effect> <heat> at c. Define $Q_c$ as net <heat> extracted from the cold reservoir per unit time, $Q_h$ as net <heat> delivered to the hot reservoir per unit time, and $P_{\rm in}$ as electrical <power> entering the module. Despite the conventional letters $Q_c,Q_h$, both denote <power> in <watts>, not accumulated <energy>. Ferrotec gives the corresponding single-stage equations and distinguishes module performance from bypass leaks.<Mathematical Modeling of Modules by Ferrotec>[§11.4(a–f), single-stage equations; §11.7, surrounding air and clamping-screw heat leaks]{ref}
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