Multi-terminal thermoeletric machines in nanoscale systems

From the introduction: "The objective of this thesis is to fill the gap in the knowledge of thermoelectric properties of multi-terminal systems. Therefore we started by studying the multi-terminal problem in its full complexity, with no constraints on the leads. We soon realized that the freedom given by three-terminal systems could be used to develop a scheme to spatially separate the heat and charge flows, obtaining a significant increase in both the power and the efficiency delivered by the engine. By adding the additional complication of a magnetic field on three-terminal systems, we were able to design a thermal magnetic switch which provides a simple way to deal with heat management at the nanoscale".