Thermal rectifying effect in two-dimensional anharmonic lattices

Abstract

We study thermal rectifying effect in two-dimensional systems consisting of the Frenkel Kontorva lattice and the Fermi-Pasta-Ulam lattice. It is found that the rectifying effect is related to the asymmetrical interface thermal resistance. The rectifying efficiency is typically about two orders of magnitude which is large enough to be observed in experiment. The dependence of rectifying efficiency on the temperature and temperature gradient is studied. The underlying mechanism is found to be the match and mismatch of the spectra of lattice vibration in two parts. © 2006 The American Physical Society.