Nonequilibrium phonon dynamics beyond the quasiequilibrium approach

TL;DR

This paper investigates nonequilibrium phonon dynamics in solids beyond the quasiequilibrium approximation by solving the Boltzmann transport equation, revealing complex relaxation behaviors and energy flow patterns during phonon thermalization.

Contribution

It introduces a detailed numerical analysis of phonon thermalization that challenges the quasiequilibrium assumption and proposes a minimal model linking energy decay to phonon interactions.

Findings

Transverse and longitudinal acoustic phonon temperatures are ill-defined during relaxation.

Hot and cold phonons develop, with energy flowing from low to high energy phonons.

LA phonon energy decay follows a power-law pattern.

Abstract

The description of nonequilibrium states of solids in a simplified manner is a challenge in the field of ultrafast dynamics. Here, the phonon thermalization in solids through the three-phonon scatterings is investigated by solving the Boltzmann transport equation (BTE). The numerical solution of the BTE shows that the transverse acoustic and longitudinal acoustic (LA) phonon temperatures are not well-defined during the relaxation, indicating the breakdown of the quasiequilibrium approximation. The development of hot and cold phonons and the backward energy flow from low to high energy phonons are observed in the initial and final stage of the relaxation, respectively. A minimal model is presented to relate the latter with the power-law decay of the LA phonon energy.