Wave propagation at nano-scale in coupled transport phenomena: application to thermoelectricity

Abstract

The analysis of coupled transport phenomena is one of the most outstanding aspects of non-equilibrium thermodynamics. In this paper the attention is put on thermoelectricity, i.e., the coupling of heat and electricity. We propose a theoretical model which goes beyond the usual relations employed at macro-scale to describe thermoelectric effects. It introduces the non-local effects which should be taken into account in view of the possible applications of thermoelectric effects at nano-scale. The proposed model is here employed to investigate how non-local effects may influence the propagation of waves.