Electrocaloric (EC) cooling works by using electricity to generate a cooling effect, which is more efficient, cost-effective, and environmentally friendly compared to traditional vapor-compression-based cooling methods.

A research team led by associate Prof. YIN Lihua from Hefei Institutes of Physical Science of the Chinese Academy of Sciences developed a new route based on lattice disorder effect to improve electrocaloric effect in BaTiO₃-based systems.

This research was published in Applied Physics Letters.

In their new study, YIN and his team focused on improving the EC effect in BaTiO₃ (barium titanate), which is commonly used in EC cooling systems. They designed materials with a special kind of disorder in their structure, which helps enhance the cooling effect.

The team created a new type of ceramic, BaTi_1-x-ySn_xZr_yO₃, by mixing different elements in ways that introduced both size disorder in the atoms and changes in the material's structure.

Tests showed that these changes resulted in a better EC effect, with an impressive temperature drop of about 0.80 K by using an electric field.

Additionally, they found that the material could maintain a large cooling effect over a wide range of temperatures, which is important for practical applications like cooling devices.

By carefully controlling the lattice disorder and structure of the material, the researchers were able to achieve stronger and more efficient EC effects.

The results suggest a close correlation between the lattice distortion and EC effects and an effective route to improve the EC effects, according to the team.