The path from here to a finished product is still ongoing. The next prototype will include around 20 segments, targeting a 20 Kelvin temperature span and approximately 100 W of cooling capacity. “The first commercial application will be control cabinet cooling and photonics or laser cooling,” Vogel stated. “These are niche markets where conventional refrigerants are often not suitable due to safety requirements such as ATEX explosion protection.”

“We believe the technology could ultimately be around 20% more efficient than current vapor compression systems in the 100 W to 10 kW range. However, scaling becomes more difficult, as our system scales linearly with material usage, whereas compressors benefit from more favorable scaling effects,” Vogel concluded. “We therefore do not target very large systems such as hotel air conditioning, but rather applications below 10 kW, including residential-scale heat pumps.”

EDIT: Easily digested video about the underlying tech https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GHl6buYjZGE