Giant Enhancement of Phonon Electron Coupling in Graphene under Femtosecond Laser Heating at Room Temperature

TL;DR

This paper investigates ultrafast electron-phonon interactions in graphene under femtosecond laser heating, revealing a giant enhancement of coupling and deviations from classical heat transfer models at room temperature.

Contribution

It introduces a theoretical framework for non-equilibrium thermal dynamics in graphene, highlighting phonon branch-resolved electron-phonon coupling effects under ultrafast excitation.

Findings

190 fs laser pulse induces strong non-equilibrium states

Carrier cooling occurs on a 450 fs timescale via phonon emission

Significant deviations from classical two temperature model predictions

Abstract

In recent years, phonon electron carrier dragging has emerged as an innovative approach for modulating energy transfer in low dimensional systems. In this Letter, we explore the fundamental mechanisms of electron-phonon coupling and the role of thermal lag behavior in ultrafast heat transport. We present a theoretical investigation of non-equilibrium thermal dynamics in graphene under femtosecond laser excitation, emphasizing the role of phonon branch-resolved electron phonon coupling. This framework provides new insight into ultrafast energy transfer processes at femtosecond timescales and illustrates key deviations from the predictions of the classical two temperature model (TTM), particularly in spatially localized heat transport. Our results show that a 190 fs laser pulse induces a strong non-equilibrium state, followed by momentum redistribution among the excited carriers. This is then followed by effective cooling of the carrier distribution on a 450 fs timescale through phonon emission.