Thermal switch using controlled capillary transition in heterogeneous nanostructures

摘要

The development of a nanoscale thermal switch is a crucial step toward advanced thermal management systems including future thermal logic gates and computers. This study demonstrates a new nanoscale thermal switch mechanism using controlled, morphological transition from adsorption to capillary state in a novel gas-filled nanostructure, i.e., a nanogap with controllable nanoposts on one surface only. The degree of thermal switch,S, at given gas pressures are predicted using Ar-filled Pt-based nanostructures and Non-Equilibrium Molecular Dynamics (NEMD) simulation combined with Grand Canonical Monte Carlo (GCMC) simulation. It is found thatSincreases by increasing the height of the nanoposts and temperature difference across the nanostructure, and decreasing the interpost spacings, with the maximum degree of switch,Smax ∼ 45 and ∼ 170 for ΔT = 10 K and 60 K, respectively, for the nanogap size of 5 nm. It is also observed that a stronger solid-fluid surface interaction results in a wider switch operating temperature window.