Energy flux operator, current conservation and the formal Fourier's law

摘要

By revisiting previous definitions, we show that one can define an energy current operator that satisfies the continuity equation for a general Hamiltonian in one dimension. This expression is useful for studying electronic, phononic and photonic energy flow in linear systems and in hybrid structures. The definition allows us to deduce the necessary conditions that result in current conservation for general-statistics systems. The discrete form of the Fourier's law of heat conduction naturally emerges in the present definition.