Measurement of the shear piezo-thermoelectric effect in copper and silver

The author reports measurements of the change in thermoelectric power of copper and silver under shear. Results are presented for a shearing stress of 4.6*107 Pa and temperature differences of up to 70 degrees C between the hot and cold faces of the specimens. In these experiments a potential gradient in the x direction results from the application of a temperature gradient in the y direction and a shear in the z direction. The shear piezo-thermoelectric coefficients are found to be 3.4*10-17 and 6.5*10-17 V K-1 m2 N-1 for copper and silver respectively. These values are quite close to those predicted from Tinder's theory of the piezo-thermoelectric effects.