Read the paper, it's linked below. This is solid state, there's no refrigerant. Heat pumps are efficient, and this IS a heat pump, which is far more efficient than the old school heat pump that uses a 'refrigeration cycle'. I'm with you on being skeptical, and it may be a long time from 'discovery' to production of a saleable device, but this IS a legit significant breakthrough.

[–] just_another_person@lemmy.world 3 points 2 weeks ago

Modern refrigerators only generate heat through the capture by refrigerant inside and the pump circulating air. Without those, it's a different story. A Peltier cooling device works similarly, but I can see it being more efficient overall since you would know where the heat ends up. Think car radiator or CPU heatsink. Same basic concept.