We study the coupled particle and energy transport in a prototype model of interacting one-dimensional system: the disordered hard-point gas, for which numerical data suggest that the thermoelectric figure of merit ZT diverges with the system size. This result is explained in terms of a microscopic mechanism, namely the local equilibrium is characterized by the emergence of a broad stationary "modified Maxwell-Boltzmann velocity distribution", of width much larger than the mean velocity of the particle flow.

A microscopic mechanism for increasing thermoelectric efficiency

SAITO, KEIJI;BENENTI, GIULIANO;CASATI, GIULIO
2010-01-01

Abstract

We study the coupled particle and energy transport in a prototype model of interacting one-dimensional system: the disordered hard-point gas, for which numerical data suggest that the thermoelectric figure of merit ZT diverges with the system size. This result is explained in terms of a microscopic mechanism, namely the local equilibrium is characterized by the emergence of a broad stationary "modified Maxwell-Boltzmann velocity distribution", of width much larger than the mean velocity of the particle flow.
2010
Thermoelectricity; Nonlinear dynamics; Onsager coefficients
Saito, Keiji; Benenti, Giuliano; Casati, Giulio
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Utilizza questo identificativo per citare o creare un link a questo documento: https://hdl.handle.net/11383/1719079
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