Two unusual aspects of thermoelectric transport

In this work it is shown that temperature inhomogeneity in an homogeneous bipolar semiconductor sample leads to a spatial variation of the charge carriers concentration profile across the sample. The concentration will become smaller in heated regions, while it will become higher in less heated ones. Moreover, the electric field can change its sign inside the sample even if the temperature is monotone dependent on the spatial direction (at a certain ratio of the semiconductor parameters). These results are important in nearly any transport phenomena, since almost all of them are related to temperature inhomogeneities (Joule heating, hot electrons, thermoelectric and thermomagnetic phenomena, photovoltage, etc.).