Simple Design Equations For Thermoelectric Coolers (Revisited) (.PDF Download)

Thermoelectric coolers (TECs) are versatile temperature-control devices. They’re best thought of as solid-state heat pumps in which the direction and rate of heat flow can be manipulated by controlling the magnitude and polarity of the TEC drive current—the “Peltier Effect.”

Trouble is, simple and accurate (or even usefully approximate) design equations for TECs are hard to find. TEC selection, sizing of heatsinks, and design of control circuits are therefore matters for guesswork and/or experimentation. The model presented here has served well in a variety of designs. It requires, as input, only numbers that are routinely provided in TEC datasheets.