Universality of thermal transport in amorphous nanowires at low temperatures

Thermal transport properties of amorphous materials at low temperatures are governed by the interaction between phonons and localized excitations referred to as tunneling two-level systems (TLSs). The temperature variation of the thermal conductivity of these amorphous materials is considered as universal and is characterized by a quadratic power law. This is well described by the phenomenological TLS model even though its microscopic explanation is still elusive. Here, by scaling down to the nanometer-scale amorphous systems much below the bulk phonon-TLS mean free path, we probe the robustness of that model in restricted geometry systems. Using very sensitive thermal conductance measurements, we demonstrate that the temperature dependence of the thermal conductance of silicon nitride nanostructures remains mostly quadratic independently of the nanowire section. It does not follow the cubic power law in temperature as expected in a Casimir-Ziman regime of boundary-limited thermal transport. This shows a thermal transport counterintuitively dominated by phonon-TLS interactions and not by phonon boundary scattering in the nanowires. This could be ascribed to an unexpected high density of TLSs on the surfaces which still dominates the phonon diffusion processes at low temperatures and explains why the universal quadratic temperature dependence of thermal conductance still holds for amorphous nanowires

Niobium Nitride Thin Films for Very Low Temperature Resistive Thermometry

International audienceWe investigate thin film resistive thermometry based on metal-to-insulator-transition (niobium nitride) materials down to very low temperature. The variation of the NbN thermometer resistance have calibrated versus temperature and magnetic field. High sensitivity in tempertaure variation detection is demonstrated through efficient temperature coefficient of resistance. The nitrogen content of the niobium nitride thin films can be tuned to adjust the optimal working temperature range. In the present experiment, we show the versatility of the NbN thin film technology through applications in very different low temperature use-cases. We demonstrate that thin film re-sistive thermometry can be extended to temperatures below 30 mK with low electrical impedance

Transport de phonons dans le régime quantique

This PhD entitles Phonon heat transport in the quantum regime is based on the analysis of the thermal properties of confined systems at very low temperature.The context of this subject is putting the systems in two extreme conditions (low temperature and low dimensions) and understand the fundamental thermal properties coming from these limits.The studied samples during this PhD that are suspended structures (membrane or nanowire) are elaborated from amorphous silicon nitride.By lowering the temperature, the phonon characteristic lengths like the mean free path or the phonon dominant wavelength increase. When these characteristic lengths exceed lateral dimensions of the system, the boundary scattering will govern the thermal properties. In the boundary scattering, phonon transport goes from boundary limited scattering (Casimir regime) to ballistics regime (quantum limit). In this ballistic regime, the heat current can be expressed using the Landauer model. The thermal conductance is then expressed as: K=N_α q T where N_α is the number of populated vibrational modes, q=((π²k_B^2)T)⁄3h is the universal value of quantum of thermal conductance, and T is the transmission coefficient.In this work, thermal conductance measurements of suspended nanowires have been performed down to very low temperature. A measurement platform having an unprecedented sensitivity have been developed that can measure a variation of energy smaller than the attojoule. These new sensors allow the measurement of thermal properties of 1D phonon waveguide in the quantum regime of heat transport. We show that the transmission coefficient is the dominant factor that set the thermal conductance value. It depends on the dimension and the shape of the reservoirs, and the nature of the material in use rendering difficult the measurement of the quantum of thermal conductance. We show that in all of the SiN structures, the thermal transport could be dominated by low energy excitations that exist in amorphous solids (a-solids).The second important set of experiments concerns the specific heat. We have studied suspended the thermal properties of very thin SiN membranes that are thought to be 2D phonon cavities. We show that the temperature dependence of the specific heat departs from the quadratic behavior as expected at very low temperature. The true models giving a quantitative explanation of the results is still under consideration. The presence of tunneling two-level systems in amorphous materials could be one possible explanation for the high absolute value of specific heat that has been measured.Ce travail de thèse est consacré à la mesure de transport de chaleur par les phonons dans le régime quantique dans des systèmes confinés à très basse température.Le contexte de ce sujet est de soumettre ces systèmes à deux conditions extrêmes : basse température et faibles dimensions et de comprendre les propriétés thermiques fondamentales issues de ces limites.Les échantillons étudiés au cours de cette thèse sont des structures suspendues (membrane ou nanofil) ; elles sont élaborées à partir de nitrure de silicium amorphe (SiN).En abaissant la température, les longueurs caractéristiques des phonons comme le libre parcours moyen ou la longueur d'onde dominante des phonons augmentent. Lorsque ces longueurs caractéristiques dépassent les dimensions latérales du système, la diffusion sur les surfaces (boundary scattering) régira les propriétés thermiques. Dans cette limite de diffusion, le transport des phonons va de la diffusion aux surfaces (régime de Casimir) au régime balistique (limite quantique). Dans ce régime balistique, le courant de chaleur peut être exprimé en utilisant le modèle de Landauer. La conductance thermique est alors exprimée par: K=N_α q T où, N_α est le nombre de modes vibratoires peuplés, q=((π²k_B^2)T)⁄3h est la valeur universelle du quantum de conductance thermique et T est le coefficient de transmission.Dans ce travail, les mesures de conductance thermique de nanofils suspendus ont été effectuées jusqu'à très basse température. Une plate-forme de mesure ayant une sensibilité sans précédent a été développée pour mesurer la variation d'énergie inférieure à l'attojoule. Ces nouveaux capteurs permettent de mesurer les propriétés thermiques du guide d'onde de phonon 1D dans le régime quantique du transport de chaleur. Nous montrons que le coefficient de transmission est le facteur dominant qui définit la valeur de conductance thermique. Ce coefficent dépend de la dimension et de la forme des réservoirs ainsi que de la nature du matériau utilisé ce qui rend difficile la mesure du quantum de conductance thermique. Nous montrons que dans toutes les structures de SiN mesurées, le transport thermique pourrait être dominé par des excitations de faible énergie qui existent dans les solides amorphes (a-solides).Le deuxième ensemble important d'expériences concerne la chaleur spécifique. Nous avons étudié les propriétés thermiques de membranes suspendues de SiN très minces que l'on pense être des cavités de phonon 2D. Nous montrons que la dépendance en température de la chaleur spécifique s'écarte du comportement quadratique comme prévu à très basse température. Les modèles pertinents donnant une explication quantitative des résultats sont encore à l'étude. La présence de systèmes à deux niveaux dans les matériaux amorphes pourrait être une explication possible de la valeur absolue élevée de la chaleur spécifique observée

Phonon transport in the quantum regime

Ce travail de thèse est consacré à la mesure de transport de chaleur par les phonons dans le régime quantique dans des systèmes confinés à très basse température.Le contexte de ce sujet est de soumettre ces systèmes à deux conditions extrêmes : basse température et faibles dimensions et de comprendre les propriétés thermiques fondamentales issues de ces limites.Les échantillons étudiés au cours de cette thèse sont des structures suspendues (membrane ou nanofil) ; elles sont élaborées à partir de nitrure de silicium amorphe (SiN).En abaissant la température, les longueurs caractéristiques des phonons comme le libre parcours moyen ou la longueur d'onde dominante des phonons augmentent. Lorsque ces longueurs caractéristiques dépassent les dimensions latérales du système, la diffusion sur les surfaces (boundary scattering) régira les propriétés thermiques. Dans cette limite de diffusion, le transport des phonons va de la diffusion aux surfaces (régime de Casimir) au régime balistique (limite quantique). Dans ce régime balistique, le courant de chaleur peut être exprimé en utilisant le modèle de Landauer. La conductance thermique est alors exprimée par: K=N_α q T où, N_α est le nombre de modes vibratoires peuplés, q=((π²k_B^2)T)⁄3h est la valeur universelle du quantum de conductance thermique et T est le coefficient de transmission.Dans ce travail, les mesures de conductance thermique de nanofils suspendus ont été effectuées jusqu'à très basse température. Une plate-forme de mesure ayant une sensibilité sans précédent a été développée pour mesurer la variation d'énergie inférieure à l'attojoule. Ces nouveaux capteurs permettent de mesurer les propriétés thermiques du guide d'onde de phonon 1D dans le régime quantique du transport de chaleur. Nous montrons que le coefficient de transmission est le facteur dominant qui définit la valeur de conductance thermique. Ce coefficent dépend de la dimension et de la forme des réservoirs ainsi que de la nature du matériau utilisé ce qui rend difficile la mesure du quantum de conductance thermique. Nous montrons que dans toutes les structures de SiN mesurées, le transport thermique pourrait être dominé par des excitations de faible énergie qui existent dans les solides amorphes (a-solides).Le deuxième ensemble important d'expériences concerne la chaleur spécifique. Nous avons étudié les propriétés thermiques de membranes suspendues de SiN très minces que l'on pense être des cavités de phonon 2D. Nous montrons que la dépendance en température de la chaleur spécifique s'écarte du comportement quadratique comme prévu à très basse température. Les modèles pertinents donnant une explication quantitative des résultats sont encore à l'étude. La présence de systèmes à deux niveaux dans les matériaux amorphes pourrait être une explication possible de la valeur absolue élevée de la chaleur spécifique observée.This PhD entitles Phonon heat transport in the quantum regime is based on the analysis of the thermal properties of confined systems at very low temperature.The context of this subject is putting the systems in two extreme conditions (low temperature and low dimensions) and understand the fundamental thermal properties coming from these limits.The studied samples during this PhD that are suspended structures (membrane or nanowire) are elaborated from amorphous silicon nitride.By lowering the temperature, the phonon characteristic lengths like the mean free path or the phonon dominant wavelength increase. When these characteristic lengths exceed lateral dimensions of the system, the boundary scattering will govern the thermal properties. In the boundary scattering, phonon transport goes from boundary limited scattering (Casimir regime) to ballistics regime (quantum limit). In this ballistic regime, the heat current can be expressed using the Landauer model. The thermal conductance is then expressed as: K=N_α q T where N_α is the number of populated vibrational modes, q=((π²k_B^2)T)⁄3h is the universal value of quantum of thermal conductance, and T is the transmission coefficient.In this work, thermal conductance measurements of suspended nanowires have been performed down to very low temperature. A measurement platform having an unprecedented sensitivity have been developed that can measure a variation of energy smaller than the attojoule. These new sensors allow the measurement of thermal properties of 1D phonon waveguide in the quantum regime of heat transport. We show that the transmission coefficient is the dominant factor that set the thermal conductance value. It depends on the dimension and the shape of the reservoirs, and the nature of the material in use rendering difficult the measurement of the quantum of thermal conductance. We show that in all of the SiN structures, the thermal transport could be dominated by low energy excitations that exist in amorphous solids (a-solids).The second important set of experiments concerns the specific heat. We have studied suspended the thermal properties of very thin SiN membranes that are thought to be 2D phonon cavities. We show that the temperature dependence of the specific heat departs from the quadratic behavior as expected at very low temperature. The true models giving a quantitative explanation of the results is still under consideration. The presence of tunneling two-level systems in amorphous materials could be one possible explanation for the high absolute value of specific heat that has been measured

Liposuction versus periareolar excision approach for gynecomastia treatment

Background: Gynecomastia (GM) is the increased fibroglandular tissue in the male breast by more than 2 cm, which is palpated under the nipple and areola. An ideal surgical approach aims to reduce the breast size, reach an acceptable breast shape, resect excessive glandular tissue, fatty tissue, and skin fatty tissue and excess skin, relocate the nipple-areolar complex, and avoid scars. Based on its importance, we aimed to compare outcomes of liposuction with and without periareolar incision in patients with GM. Materials and Methods: This was a randomized clinical trial on patients referred for plastic surgery. Patients with GM were allocated into two treatment groups. Group A underwent liposuction without any areolar skin incision and group B had liposuction with the areolar skin incision. Patients were followed-up after surgery. Data were analyzed by Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS) version 20. Results: Sixty patients aged between 20 and 27 years old participated in this study. Three hematomas, two surgical site infections, one nipple hypopigmentation after surgery, and one seroma formation were noted in group B. On the other hand, one hematoma and one seroma formation were noted in group A. The patients in group A were highly satisfied after the liposuction without skin incision procedure compared with group B (P = 0.01). Conclusions: The management of GM by liposuction, either with the periareolar excision technique or without skin incision, allows the effective removal of fat and glandular tissue of the male breast. Although there was no significant difference regarding postoperation complications between groups, patients' satisfaction should be considered

Heat conduction measurements in ballistic 1D phonon waveguides indicate breakdown of the thermal conductance quantization

International audienceEmerging quantum technologies require mastering thermal management, especially at the nanoscale. It is now accepted that thermal metamaterial based phonon manipulation is possible, especially at sub-kelvin temperatures. In these extreme limits of low temperatures and dimensions, heat conduction enters a quantum regime where phonon exchange obeys the Landauer formalism. Phonon transport is then governed by the transmission coefficients between the ballistic conductor and the thermal reservoirs. Here we report on ultra-sensitive thermal experiments made on ballistic 1D phonon conductors using a micro-platform suspended sensor. Our thermal conductance measurements attain a power sensitivity of 15 attoWatts. √ Hz −1 around 100 mK. Ballistic thermal transport is dominated by non-ideal transmission coefficients and not by the quantized thermal conductance of the nanowire itself. This limitation of heat transport in the quantum regime may have a significant impact on modern thermal management and thermal circuit design

Specific Heat of Thin Phonon Cavities at Low Temperature: Very High Values Revealed by ZeptoJoule Calorimetry

International audienceSpecific heat of phonon cavities is investigated in order to analyse the effect of phonon confinement on thermodynamic properties. The specific heat of free standing very thin SiN membranes in the low dimensional limit is measured down to very low temperatures (from 6~K to 50~mK). In the whole temperature range, we measured an excess of specific heat orders of magnitude bigger than the typical value observed in amorphous solids. Below 1~K, a cross-over in $c_p$ to a lower power law is seen, and the value of specific heat of thinner membranes becomes larger than that of thicker ones demonstrating a significant contribution coming from the surface. We show that this high value of the specific heat cannot be explained by the sole contribution of 2D phonon modes (Lamb waves). The excess specific heat, being thickness dependent, could come from tunneling two level systems (TLS) that form in low density regions of amorphous solids located on the surfaces. We also show that the specific heat is strongly tuned by the internal stress of the membrane by orders of magnitude, giving unprecedentedly high values, making low stress SiN very efficient for energy storage at very low temperature

Reduction of phonon mean free path: from low temperature physics to room temperature applications in thermoelectricity

International audienceIt has been proposed for a long time now that the reduction of the thermal conductivity by reducing the phonon mean free path is one of the best way to improve the current performance of thermoelectrics. By measuring the thermal conductance and thermal conductivity of nanowires and thin films, we show different ways of increasing the phonon scattering from low temperature up to room temperature experiments. It is shown that playing with the geometry (constriction, periodic structures, nano-inclusions), from the ballistic to the diffusive limit, the phonon thermal transport can be severely altered in single crystalline semiconducting structures; the phonon mean free path being in consequence reduced. The diverse implications on thermoelectric properties will be eventually discussed.Reduction du libre parcours moyen des phonons : de la physique des basses températures aux applications en thermoélectricitésthermoélectricitésà l'ambiante. Il a ´ eté proposé depuis longtemps maintenant que dimi-nuer la conductivité thermique en réduisant le libre parcours moyen des phonons est une des meilleures facons d'améliorer les performances actuelles des matériaux thermoélectriques. En mesurant la conductance thermique et la conductivité thermique de nanofils et de couches minces, nous montrons différentesmanì eres d'augmenter la diffusion des phonons des basses températures jusqu'` a température ambiante. Il est montré qu'en jouant sur la géométrie (constriction, structures périodiques, nano-inclusions), ` a partir de la limite balistique jusqu'` a la limite diffusive, le transport thermique phononique peutêtrepeutêtre de facon significative altéré dans des structures monocris-tallines semiconductrices ; le libre parcours moyen des phononsétantphononsétant réduit en conséquence. Enfin, les diverses implications sur les propriétés thermoélectriques seront discutées

Experimental evaluation of thermal rectification in a ballistic nanobeam with asymmetric mass gradient

International audiencePractical applications of heat transport control with artificial metamaterials will heavily depend on the realization of thermal diodes/rectifiers, in which thermal conductivity depends on the heat flux direction. Whereas various macroscale implementations have been made experimentally, nanoscales realizations remain challenging and efficient rectification still requires a better fundamental understanding of heat carriers' transport and nonlinear mechanisms. Here, we propose an experimental realization of a thermal rectifier based on two leads with asymmetric mass gradients separated by a ballistic spacer, as proposed in a recent numerical investigation, and measure its thermal properties electrically with the microbridge technique. We use a Si 3 N 4 nanobeam on which an asymmetric mass gradient has been engineered and demonstrate that in its current form, this structure does not allow for thermal rectification. We explain this by a combination of too weak asymmetry and non-linearities. Our experimental observations provide important information towards fabricating rigorous thermal rectifiers in the ballistic phonon transport regime, which are expected to open new possibilities for applications in thermal management and quantum thermal devices