No Arabic abstract
A thermal diode based on the asymmetric radiative heat transfer between nanoparticles assisted by the nonreciprocal graphene plasmons waveguides is proposed in this work. The thermal diode system consists of two particles and a drift-biased suspended graphene sheet in close proximity of them. Nonreciprocal graphene plasmons are induced by the drift currents in the graphene sheet, and then couple to the waves emitted by the particles in near-field regime. Based on the asymmetry with respect to their propagation direction of graphene plasmons, the thermal rectification between the two particles is observed. The performance of the radiative thermal diode can be actively adjusted through tuning the chemical potential or changing the drift currents in the graphene sheet. With a large drift velocity and a small chemical potential, a perfect radiative thermal diode with a rectification coefficient extremely approaching to 1 can be achieved within a wide range of the interparticle distance from near to far-field. The dispersion relations of the graphene plasmons are adopted to analyze the underlying physics of the rectification effect. In addition, due to the wide band characteristic of the nonreciprocal graphene plasmons, the driftbiased graphene can act as a universal platform for the thermal rectification between particles. The particles with a larger particle resonance frequency are much more preferred to produce a better thermal diode. This technology could find broad applications in the field of thermal management at nanoscale
In this Rapid Communication, we theoretically demonstrate that near-field radiative heat transfer (NFRHT) can be modulated and enhanced by a new energy transmission mode of evanescent wave, i.e. the nonreciprocal surface plasmons polaritons (NSPPs). In addition to the well-known coupled surface plasmon polaritons (SPPs), applying a drift current on a graphene sheet leads to an extremely asymmetric photonic transmission model, which has never been noted in the noncontact heat exchanges at nanoscale before. The coupling of plasmons in the infrared bands dominates the NFRHT, associated with low loss (high loss and ultrahigh confinement) traveling along (against) the current. The dependence of NSPPs on the drift-current velocity as well as the vacuum gap is analyzed. It is found that the coupling of NSPPs at smaller and larger gap sizes exhibits different nonreciprocities. Finally, we also demonstrate that the prominent influence of the drift current on the radiative heat flux is found at a low chemical potential. These findings will open a new way to spectrally control NFRHT, which holds great potential for improving the performance of energy systems like near-field thermophotovoltaics and thermal modulator.
It is shown that thermally excited plasmon-polariton modes can strongly mediate, enhance and emph{tune} the near-field radiation transfer between two closely separated graphene sheets. The dependence of near-field heat exchange on doping and electron relaxation time is analyzed in the near infra-red within the framework of fluctuational electrodynamics. The dominant contribution to heat transfer can be controlled to arise from either interband or intraband processes. We predict maximum transfer at low doping and for plasmons in two graphene sheets in resonance, with orders-of-magnitude enhancement (e.g. $10^2$ to $10^3$ for separations between $0.1mu m$ to $10nm$) over the Stefan-Boltzmann law, known as the far field limit. Strong, tunable, near-field transfer offers the promise of an externally controllable thermal switch as well as a novel hybrid graphene-graphene thermoelectric/thermophotovoltaic energy conversion platform.
The decay dynamics of excited carriers in graphene have attracted wide scientific attention, as the gapless Dirac electronic band structure opens up relaxation channels that are not allowed in conventional materials. We report Fermi-level-dependent mid-infrared emission in graphene originating from a previously unobserved decay channel: hot plasmons generated from optically excited carriers. The observed Fermi-level dependence rules out Planckian light emission mechanisms and is consistent with the calculated plasmon emission spectra in photoinverted graphene. Evidence for bright hot plasmon emission is further supported by Fermi-level-dependent and polarization-dependent resonant emission from graphene plasmonic nanoribbon arrays under pulsed laser excitation. Spontaneous plasmon emission is a bright emission process as our calculations for our experimental conditions indicate that the spectral flux of spontaneously generated plasmons is several orders of magnitude higher than blackbody emission at a temperature of several thousand Kelvin. In this work, it is shown that a large enhancement in radiation efficiency of graphene plasmons can be achieved by decorating graphene surface with gold nanodisks, which serve as out-coupling scatterers and promote localized plasmon excitation when they are resonant with the incoming excitation light. These observations set a framework for exploration of ultrafast and ultrabright mid-infrared emission processes and light sources.
In this paper we show that graphene surface plasmons can be excited when an electromagnetic wave packet impinges on a single metal slit covered with graphene. The excitation of the plasmons localized over the slit is revealed by characteristic peaks in the absorption spectrum. It is shown that the position of the peaks can be tuned either by the graphene doping level or by the dielectric function of the material filling the slit. The whole system forms the basis for a plasmonic sensor when the slit is filled with an analyte.
In this article we perform the quantization of graphene plasmons using both a macroscopic approach based on the classical average electromagnetic energy and a quantum hydrodynamic model, in which graphene charge carriers are modeled as a charged fluid. Both models allow to take into account the dispersion of graphenes optical response, with the hydrodynamic model also allowing for the inclusion of non-local effects. Using both methods, the electromagnetic field mode-functions, and the respective frequencies, are determined for two different graphene structures. we show how to quantize graphene plasmons, considering that graphene is a dispersive medium, and taking into account both local and nonlocal descriptions. It is found that the dispersion of graphenes optical response leads to a non-trivial normalization condition for the mode-functions. The obtained mode-functions are then used to calculate the decay of an emitter, represented by a dipole, via the excitation of graphene surface plasmon-polaritons. The obtained results are compared with the total spontaneous decay rate of the emitter and a near perfect match is found in the relevant spectral range. It is found that non-local effects in graphenes conductivity, become relevant for the emission rate for small Fermi energies and small distances between the dipole and the graphene sheet.