On the minimum limit to thermal conductivity of multi-atom component crystalline solid solutions based on impurity mass scattering. (September 2017)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Giri, Ashutosh; Braun, Jeffrey L.; Rost, Christina M.; Hopkins, Patrick E.
• Is Part Of: Scripta materialia. Number 138(2017)
• Page Start: 134
• Page End: 138
• Publication Date: 2017-09
• Subjects: Thermal conductivity -- Alloy scattering -- Multi-component alloys; Materials -- Periodicals; Metallurgy -- Periodicals; Metalen; Legeringen; Materiaalkunde; Metals, metalworking and machinery industries; Metals; Electronic journals; 620.11
• DOI: 10.1016/j.scriptamat.2017.05.045
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 1359-6462

Abstract

Abstract: We investigate the effect of mass disorder on the thermal conductivity of Lennard-Jones based multi-component solid solutions via classical molecular dynamics simulations. In agreement with Klemens' perturbation theory, the thermal conductivity reduction due to mass scattering alone is found to reach a critical point, whereby adding more impurity atoms in the solid solution does not reduce the thermal conductivity. A further decrease in thermal conductivity requires a change in local strain-field, which together with mass defect scattering can lead to ultralow thermal conductivities in solid solutions, surpassing the theoretical minimum limits of the corresponding amorphous phases. Graphical Abstract: