Topological quantization of energy transport in micro- and nano-mechanical lattices

Abstract

Topological effects typically discussed in the context of quantum physics are emerging as one of the central paradigms of physics. Here, we demonstrate the role of topology in energy transport through dimerized micro- and nano-mechanical lattices in the classical regime, i.e., essentially "masses and springs". We show that the thermal conductance factorizes into topological and non-topological components. The former takes on three discrete values and arises due to the appearance of edge modes that prevent good contact between the heat reservoirs and the bulk, giving a length-independent reduction of the conductance. In essence, energy input at the boundary mostly stays there, an effect robust against disorder and nonlinearity. These results bridge two seemingly disconnected disciplines of physics, namely topology and thermal transport, and suggest ways to engineer thermal contacts, opening a direction to explore the ramifications of topological properties on nanoscale technology.

6 pages, 3 figures; Supplemental information included as an ancillary file

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• Non-Hermitian generalizations of extended Su-Schrieffer-Heeger models
• Bulk-edge correspondence of classical diffusion phenomena
• Open System Tensor Networks and Kramers' Crossover for Quantum Transport
• Radiative heat flux through a topological Su-Schrieffer-Heeger chain of plasmonic nanoparticles
• Topological properties of a class of Su-Schrieffer-Heeger variants
• Performance of Reservoir Discretizations in Quantum Transport Simulations
• Higher-order topological heat conduction on a lattice for detection of corner states
• Edge states of a diffusion equation in one dimension: Rapid heat conduction to the heat bath
• Analytic expressions for the steady-state current with finite extended reservoirs
• Accumulative reservoir construction: Bridging continuously relaxed and periodically refreshed extended reservoirs
• Geometry induced local thermal current from cold to hot in a classical harmonic system
• Gibbs phenomenon and the emergence of the steady-state in quantum transport
• Particle and thermal transport through one dimensional topological systems via Lindblad formalism
• Transport in a periodically driven tilted lattice via the extended reservoir approach: Stability criterion for recovering the continuum limit
• The confluence of fractured resonances at points of dynamical, many--body flare
• Dual current anomalies and quantum transport within extended reservoir simulations
• Approaching the scaling limit of transport through lattices with dephasing