Abstract We explore an externally tunable way of producing heat rectification, by means of application of an inhomogeneous distribution of a tensile mechanical stress on heat conducting silicon thin films and graphene ribbons. The resulting strain modifies the thermal conductivity of the material, which, in this way, may be partially tuned from the outside. We calculate the rectification coefficient R as function of the applied strain, of the length of the system, and of the external heat flux. The rectification coefficient of a single device results in R ≃ 1.3 for both systems under consideration. Such a value can be enhanced by connecting in series several devices.

中文翻译：

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通过施加机械应力进行可调热整流

摘要 我们通过在导热硅薄膜和石墨烯带上应用拉伸机械应力的不均匀分布，探索了一种产生热整流的外部可调方式。由此产生的应变改变了材料的热导率，通过这种方式，可以从外部进行部分调整。我们计算整流系数 R 作为外加应变、系统长度和外部热通量的函数。对于所考虑的两个系统，单个器件的整流系数导致 R ≃ 1.3。可以通过串联多个设备来提高这样的价值。