Enhanced effect of negative differential thermal resistance in nanoscale confined structure with nanopatterned surfaces

Abstract

A nanoscale confined fluid structure with nanopatterned surface has been investigated by using nonequilibrium molecular dynamics simulations and kinetic theory. The negative differential thermal resistance (NDTR) effect has been observed in such a nanoscale solid-fluid-solid sandwiched structure, but for high fluid density, the NDTR effect is weak or even disappears. In the present paper, it is shown that the NDTR effect can be enhanced or reproduced in the range of T > 150 K roughly by introducing a nanopatterned structure to the cold surface owing to the enhanced molecule adsorption in the nanocavities. The findings in the present paper pave the way for the application of NDTR in the design of a thermal device.