| Jean Charles Athanase Peltier | |
|---|---|
Jean Charles Athanase Peltier, lithography by Antoine Maurin |
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| Occupation | Physicist |
Jean Charles Athanase Peltier ( /ˈpɛlti.eɪ/;[1] French: [pɛlˈtje]; February 22, 1785, in Ham – October 27, 1845, in Paris) was a French physicist.
He discovered the calorific effect of electric current passing through the junction of two different metals. This is now called the Peltier effect or Peltier–Seebeck effect. The Peltier effect, where current is forced through a junction of two different metals, forms the basis of the small 12/24 volt heater/coolers sold for vehicle use. By switching the direction of current, either heating or cooling may be achieved.
It also forms the basis of the rather expensive, but very stable, junction heated soldering irons, and is used for spot cooling of certain integrated circuits. Junctions always come in pairs, as the two different metals must be joined at two points. Thus heat will be moved from one junction to the other. To make a usable heat pump, multiple junctions are created between two plates. One side will get hot and the other side cold. An effective heat dissipation device must be attached to the hot side to maintain a cooling effect on the cold side. This is usually a heatsink and fan assembly.