Thermal rectification of electrons in hybrid normal metal-superconductor nanojunctions

We theoretically investigate heat transport in hybrid normal metal-superconductor (NS) nanojunctions focusing on the effect of thermal rectification. We show that the heat diode effect in the junction strongly depends on the transmissivity and the nature of the NS contact. Thermal rectification efficiency can reach up to ~123% for a fully transmissive ballistic junction and up to 84% in diffusive NS contacts. Both values exceed the rectification efficiency of a NIS tunnel junction (I stands for an insulator) by a factor close to ~5 and ~3, respectively. Furthermore, we show that for NS point-contacts with low transmissivity, inversion of the heat diode effect can take place. Our results could prove useful for tailoring heat management at the nanoscale, and for mastering thermal flux propagation in low-temperature caloritronic nanocircuitry. © 2013 AIP Publishing LLC.