  The discovery of Heusler alloys has revolutionized the research field of
intermetallics due to the ease with which one can derive potential candidates
for multifunctional applications. During recent years, many half Heusler alloys
have been investigated for their thermoelectric properties. The f electron
based rare earth ternary half Heusler compound DyPdBi has its f energy levels
located close to the Fermi energy level. Other research efforts have emphasized
that such materials have good thermoelectric capabilities. We have explored
using first principles the electronic band structure of DyPdBi by use of
different exchange correlation potentials in the density functional theoretical
framework. Transport coefficients that arise in the study of thermoelectric
properties of DyPdBi have been calculated and illustrate its potential as an
efficient thermoelectric material. Both the theoretically estimated Seebeck
coefficient and the power factor agree well with the available experimental
results. Our calculations illustrate that it is essential to include spin-orbit
coupling in these models of f electron half Heusler materials.
