Heat conduction in a one-dimensional harmonic chain with three-dimensional vibrations

Abstract

We study vibrational energy transport in a quasi one-dimensional (1D) harmonic chain with both longitudinal and transverse vibrations. We demonstrate via both numerical simulation and theoretic analysis that for 1D atomic chain connected by three-dimensional (3D) harmonic springs, the coefficient of heat conduction changes continuously with its lattice constant, indicating the qualitative difference from the corresponding 1D case where the coefficient is independent of the lattice constant. ©2008 The Physical Society of Japan.