External
driving of the Fermion reservoirs interacting with a nanoscale
charge-conductor is shown to enhance its mechanical stability during
resonant tunneling. This counterintuitive cooling effect is predicted
despite the net energy flow into the device. Field-induced plasmon
oscillations stir the energy distribution of charge carriers near
the reservoir’s chemical potentials into a nonequilibrium state
with favored transport of low-energy electrons. Consequently, excess
heating of mechanical degrees of freedom in the conductor is suppressed.
We demonstrate and analyze this effect for a generic model of mechanical
instability in nanoelectronic devices, covering a broad range of parameters.
Plasmon-induced stabilization is suggested as a feasible strategy
to confront a major problem of current-induced heating and breakdown
of nanoscale systems operating far from equilibrium.
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