  The thermoelectric response of thermally activated electrolytes (TAE) in a
slit channel is studied theoretically and by numerical simulations. The term
TAE refers to electrolytes whose charge carrier concentration is a function of
temperature, as recently suggested for ionic liquids and highly concentrated
aqueous electrolyte solutions. Two competing mechanisms driving charge
transport by temperature gradients are identified. For suitable values of the
activation energy that governs the generation of charge carriers, a giant
thermoelectric response is found, which could help explaining recent
experimental results for nanoporous media infiltrated with TAEs.

Soft Condensed Matter