Temporally-adjustable radiative thermal diode based on metal-insulator phase change

Abstract

Thermal diode, which allows heat transfer between two terminals in one direction but blocks it in the opposite direction, has attracted extensive attention in recent years because of its potential applications in thermal management, energy systems, information processing and so on. Compared to the conductive thermal diode, the photon-based radiative thermal diode can break the performance limitations and achieve better thermal rectification effect. In this study, a temporally-adjustable radiative thermal diode consisting of vanadium dioxide (VO2) and blackbody is proposed. Based on the metal-insulator phase change of vanadium dioxide, the thermal rectification could be modulated with time, thus enabling time-dependent heat flow control. The influence of shape factors on the thermal rectification is specifically investigated, revealing that the thermal rectification effect is positively correlated with the ratios of inner and outer radius of cylindrical and spherical radiative thermal diodes, and the thermal rectification effect of planar diode is stronger than that of cylindrical or spherical diode under the same settings. The temporally-adjustable photon-based thermal diode is demonstrated to be more powerful with large thermal rectification ratio, precise control of heat, and configuration adjustability.