arXiv · 0903.1771
Phonon-phonon interactions and phonon damping in carbon nanotubes
Abstract
We formulate and study the effective low-energy quantum theory of interacting long-wavelength acoustic phonons in carbon nanotubes within the framework of continuum elasticity theory. A general and analytical derivation of all three- and four-phonon processes is provided, and the relevant coupling constants are determined in terms of few elastic coefficients. Due to the low dimensionality and the parabolic dispersion, the finite-temperature density of noninteracting flexural phonons diverges, and a nonperturbative approach to their interactions is necessary. Within a mean-field description, we find that a dynamical gap opens. In practice, this gap is thermally smeared, but still has important consequences. Using our theory, we compute the decay rates of acoustic phonons due to phonon-phonon and electron-phonon interactions, implying upper bounds for their quality factor.
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A. De Martino, R. Egger, A. O. Gogolin. 2009-05-14. Phonon-phonon interactions and phonon damping in carbon nanotubes. https://doi.org/10.1103/physrevb.79.205408
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