Heat transfer mediated by the dynamical Casimir effect in an optomechanical system

Abstract

Heat transfer in an optomechanical system consisting of one optical cavity and two movable mirrors with or without a laser field is studied by using the quantum master-equation method. The radiation-pressure interaction between the cavity and the mirrors contains the single-photon optomechanical coupling (SPOC) and the dynamical Casimir effect (DCE). When the laser is not applied to the cavity, the heat transfer is induced by a nonlocal interaction between mirrors that builds up only due to the presence of the DCE. Once the monochromatic field is turned on, both the SPOC and the DCE can be used to modify the energy transfer process. In both cases, the heat transfer can be drastically enhanced at resonant conditions manifested by the DCE. Our results can motivate further studies to actively control heat transfer mediated by the DCE in optomechanical devices.