Heat conduction in quantum harmonic chains with alternate masses and self-consistent thermal reservoirs.

Abstract

We consider the analytical investigation of the heat current in the steady state of the quantum harmonic chain of oscillators with alternate masses and self-consistent reservoirs. We analyze the thermal conductivity _ and obtain interesting properties: in the high temperature regime, where quantum and classical descriptions coincide, _ does not change with temperature, but it is quite sensitive to the difference between the alternate masses; and contrasting with this behavior, in the low temperature regime, _ becomes an explicit function of the temperature, but its dependence on the masses difference disappears. Our results reinforce the message that quantum effects cannot be neglected in the study of heat conduction in low temperatures.