Related papers: From thermal rectifiers to thermoelectric devices
Thermal rectification and heat amplification are investigated in a nonequilibrium V-type three-level system with quantum interference. By applying the Redfield master equation combined with full counting statistics, we analyze the steady…
The macroscopic control of ubiquitous heat flow remains poorly explored due to the lack of a fundamental theoretical method. Here, by establishing temperature-dependent transformation thermotics for treating materials whose conductivity…
Research on thermoelectrical energy conversion, the reuse of waste heat produced by some mechanical or chemical processes to generate electricity, has recently gained some momentum. The calculation of the electronic parameters entering the…
In this work, a new concept for the conversion of heat into electricity is presented. The conversion is based on the combined effects of a thermoacoustic prime mover coupled with a magnetohydrodynamic generator, using different working…
Systems in which the heat flux depends on the direction of the flow are said to present thermal rectification. This effect has attracted much theoretical and experimental interest in recent years. However, in most theoretical models the…
A theory of temperature dynamics in many-body systems driven by time-dependent external sources is introduced. The formalism based on the combination of the perturbation theory and the fluctuational-electrodynamics approach in many-body…
Concepts of everyday use like energy, heat, and temperature have acquired a precise meaning after the development of thermodynamics. Thermodynamics provides the basis for understanding how heat and work are related and with the general…
Advances in the fabrication and characterization of nanoscale systems now allow for a deeper understanding of one of the most basic issues in science and technology: the flow of energy at the microscopic level. In this Colloquium we survey…
We establish a theory of optimal efficiency and power for three-terminal thermoelectric engines which have two independent output electric currents and one input heat current. This set-up goes beyond the conventional heat engines with only…
We analyze the steady-state energy transfer in a chain of coupled two-level systems connecting two thermal reservoirs. Through an analytic treatment we find that the energy current is independent of the system size, hence violating…
Asymmetric heat transfer systems, often referred to as thermal diodes or thermal rectifiers, have garnered increasing interest due to their wide range of application possibilities. Most of those previous macroscopic thermal diodes either…
Efficient heat management at cryogenic temperatures is crucial for superconducting quantum technologies. This study demonstrates the controlled manipulation of the heat flow and heat rectification through an asymmetric superconducting…
Deriving macroscopic phenomenological laws of irreversible thermodynamics from simple microscopic models is one of the tasks of non-equilibrium statistical mechanics. We consider stationary energy transport in crystals with reference to…
Radiative thermal diodes based on two-element structures rectify heat flows thanks to a temperature dependence of material optical properties. The heat transport asymmetry through these systems, however, remains weak without a significant…
We study some mechanical problems in which a friction force is acting on the system. Using the fundamental concepts of state, time evolution and energy conservation we explain how to extend Newtonian mechanics to thermodynamics. We arrive…
Nanoscale conductors are interesting for thermoelectrics because of their particular spectral features connecting separated heat and particle currents. Multiterminal devices in the quantum regime benefit from phase-coherent phenomena, which…
A simple and effective approach to thermodynamics is suggested, which solves the major difficulties in the traditional presentation of the subject. The internal energy is introduced from the behavior of deformable bodies, whereas the…
The standard approach to non-equilibrium thermodynamics describes transport in terms of generalised forces and coupled currents, a typical example being the Fourier law that relates temperature gradient to the heat flux. Here we demonstrate…
This Colloquium is a fast journey through the build-up of key thermodynamical concepts, i.e. work, heat and irreversibility -- and how they relate to information. Born at the time of industrial revolution to optimize the exploitation of…
Thermoelectric devices convert temperature gradients into electrical power and vice versa, thus enabling energy scavenging from waste heat, sensing and cooling. Yet, many of these attractive applications are hindered by the limited…