THz-induced polaritonic thermoelectricity in graphene

This paper presents a novel approach to enhancing thermoelectric effects in graphene by exciting surface phonon polaritons (SPhPs) in lithium niobate (LiNbO₃) using terahertz (THz) radiation. Strong near-field coupling enables highly localized substrate heating, resulting in a temperature increase of approximately 200 mK. This localized heating generates a measurable thermoelectric voltage of up to 6 μV in graphene, significantly boosting the Seebeck response and allowing precise thermal control. The findings reveal a new SPhP-mediated mechanism for THz-driven thermoelectric generation, providing an efficient and tunable platform for graphene-based THz photodetectors, sensors, and energy harvesting devices.