One-way heat transfer in deep-subwavelength thermophotonics

TL;DR

This paper demonstrates a topological one-way heat transfer mechanism in deep-subwavelength thermophotonic lattices that is highly robust against imperfections, enabling enhanced and stable thermal management and energy devices.

Contribution

It introduces a topological approach to achieve robust one-way heat transport at deep subwavelength scales, overcoming defect sensitivity in thermophotonics.

Findings

Achieves nearly five orders of radiative enhancement.

Demonstrates robustness against imperfections and disorder.

Provides a blueprint for resilient thermal systems.

Abstract

Nonreciprocal thermophotonics, by breaking Lorentz reciprocity, exceeds current theoretical efficiency limits, unlocking opportunities to energy devices and thermal management. However, energy transfer in current systems is highly defect-sensitive. This sensitivity is further amplified at deep subwavelength scales by inevitable multi-source interactions, interface wrinkles, and manufacturing tolerances, making precise control of thermal photons increasingly challenging. Here, we demonstrate a topological one-way heat transport in a deep-subwavelength thermophotonic lattice. This one-way heat flow, driven by global resonances, is strongly localized at the geometric boundaries and exhibits exceptional robustness against imperfections and disorder, achieving nearly five orders of radiative enhancement. Our findings offer a blueprint for developing robust thermal systems capable of withstanding strong perturbations.