Numerical analysis has been carried out to figure out the performance of the thermoelectric micro-cooler with the three-dimensional model. A small-size and column-type thermoelectric cooler is considered and Bi2Te3 and Sb2Te3 are selected as the n- and p-type thermoelectric materials, respectively. The thickness of a thermoelectric element considered is 5-20 mu m. The effect of parameters such as the temperature difference, the current, the thickness of a thermoelectric element, and the number of thermoelectric pairs on the performance of the cooler has been investigated. The predicted results show that the performance can be improved for the thick element with the large number of thermoelectric pairs or the small cross-sectional area of the element. (c) 2006 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.