Thermodynamics of Dipolar Chain Systems

TL;DR

This paper analyzes the thermodynamics of layered dipolar molecular systems, revealing how intralayer interactions influence observable properties like heat capacity, with implications for future experiments on polar molecules.

Contribution

It provides an analytical and numerical study of layered dipolar systems' thermodynamics, incorporating intralayer repulsion and quantum statistics, which was not previously detailed.

Findings

Heat capacity reflects intralayer interactions.

Analytical solutions for two chains, numerical for three.

Potential for experimental detection of interaction effects.

Abstract

The thermodynamics of a quantum system of layers containing perpendicularly oriented dipolar molecules is studied within an oscillator approximation for both bosonic and fermionic species. The system is assumed to be built from chains with one molecule in each layer. We consider the effects of the intralayer repulsion and quantum statistical requirements in systems with more than one chain. Specifically, we consider the case of two chains and solve the problem analytically within the harmonic Hamiltonian approach which is accurate for large dipole moments. The case of three chains is calculated numerically. Our findings indicate that thermodynamic observables, such as the heat capacity, can be used to probe the signatures of the intralayer interaction between chains. This should be relevant for near future experiments on polar molecules with strong dipole moments.