Ballistic thermal conductance of graphene ribbons

Nano Lett. 2010 May 12;10(5):1652-6. doi: 10.1021/nl904206d.

Abstract

An elastic-shell-based theory for calculating the thermal conductance of graphene ribbons of arbitrary width w is presented. The analysis of vibrational modes of a continuum thin plate leads to a general equation for ballistic conductance sigma. At low temperature, it yields a power law sigma approximately T(beta), where the exponent beta varies with the ribbon width w from beta = 1 for a narrow ribbon (sigma approximately T, as a four-channel quantum wire) to beta = (3)/(2) (sigma approximately wT(3/2)) in the limit of wider graphene sheets. The ballistic results can be augmented by the phenomenological value of a phonon mean free path to account for scattering and agree well with the reported experimental observations.

Publication types

  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't
  • Research Support, U.S. Gov't, Non-P.H.S.

MeSH terms

  • Computer Simulation
  • Crystallization / methods*
  • Electric Conductivity
  • Graphite / chemistry*
  • Hot Temperature
  • Macromolecular Substances / chemistry
  • Models, Chemical*
  • Models, Molecular
  • Molecular Conformation
  • Nanostructures / chemistry*
  • Nanostructures / ultrastructure*
  • Nanotechnology / methods*
  • Particle Size
  • Surface Properties
  • Thermal Conductivity

Substances

  • Macromolecular Substances
  • Graphite