Computational Study of Thermally Rectifying Behavior from NanostructuredInterfaces
Document Type
Article
Journal/Book Title/Conference
Journal of Heat Transfer
Volume
133
Issue
9
Publication Date
2011
Abstract
Thermal rectification is a phenomenon in which transport is preferred in one direction over the opposite. Although observations of thermal rectification have been elusive, it could be useful in many applications such as thermal management of electronics and improvement of thermoelectric devices. The current work explores the possibility of thermally rectifying devices with the use of nanostructured interfaces. Interfaces can theoretically result in thermally rectifying behavior because of the difference in phonon frequency content between two dissimilar materials. The current work shows an effective rectification of greater than 25% in a device composed of two different materials divided equally by a single planar interface.
Recommended Citation
N.A. Roberts and D.G. Walker, Computational Study of Thermally Rectifyi ng Behavior from Nanostructured Interfaces, Journal of Heat Transfer, 133 , 9, 2011.