Exploration of quasi-Casimir coupling induced phonon heat transfer mechanism by deep learning

As part of the global climate change response, advanced thermal management techniques at the nanoscale are required to achieve high energy conversion efficiencies. The applicant has discovered a thermal resonance phenomenon through quasi-Casimir coupling, in which two solids sandwiched in a vacuum nanogap of several molecular layers realize phonon transport only through intermolecular interactions. This new phonon heat transfer mechanism is characterized by the fact that it does not require an electromagnetic field, since the phonon transport is induced by quasi-Casimir coupling between two solid surfaces. In other words, only phonons are allowed to transmit and not electrons, which makes the heat transfer efficiency higher than that of near-field thermal radiation or Casimir heat transfer. The aim of this study is to clarify the principles of innovative nanoscale thermal management techniques for ultra-small localized regions based on the phonon heat transfer mechanism induced by quasi-Casimir coupling in the nanogap through molecular dynamics simulations and deep learning.