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28  
29   \begin{document}
30  
# Line 44 | Line 44 | The abstract
44   \begin{doublespace}
45  
46   \begin{abstract}
47 < The abstract
47 >
48 > With the Non-Isotropic Velocity Scaling algorithm (NIVS) we have
49 > developed, an unphysical thermal flux can be effectively set up even
50 > for non-homogeneous systems like interfaces in non-equilibrium
51 > molecular dynamics simulations. In this work, this algorithm is
52 > applied for simulating thermal conductance at metal / organic solvent
53 > interfaces with various coverages of butanethiol capping
54 > agents. Different solvents and force field models were tested. Our
55 > results suggest that the United-Atom models are able to provide an
56 > estimate of the interfacial thermal conductivity comparable to
57 > experiments in our simulations with satisfactory computational
58 > efficiency. From our results, the acoustic impedance mismatch between
59 > metal and liquid phase is effectively reduced by the capping
60 > agents, and thus leads to interfacial thermal conductance
61 > enhancement. Furthermore, this effect is closely related to the
62 > capping agent coverage on the metal surfaces and the type of solvent
63 > molecules, and is affected by the models used in the simulations.
64 >
65   \end{abstract}
66  
67   \newpage
# Line 56 | Line 73 | The abstract
73   %%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%
74  
75   \section{Introduction}
76 + Interfacial thermal conductance is extensively studied both
77 + experimentally and computationally\cite{cahill:793}, due to its
78 + importance in nanoscale science and technology. Reliability of
79 + nanoscale devices depends on their thermal transport
80 + properties. Unlike bulk homogeneous materials, nanoscale materials
81 + features significant presence of interfaces, and these interfaces
82 + could dominate the heat transfer behavior of these
83 + materials. Furthermore, these materials are generally heterogeneous,
84 + which challenges traditional research methods for homogeneous
85 + systems.
86  
87 < The intro.
87 > Heat conductance of molecular and nano-scale interfaces will be
88 > affected by the chemical details of the surface. Experimentally,
89 > various interfaces have been investigated for their thermal
90 > conductance properties. Wang {\it et al.} studied heat transport
91 > through long-chain hydrocarbon monolayers on gold substrate at
92 > individual molecular level\cite{Wang10082007}; Schmidt {\it et al.}
93 > studied the role of CTAB on thermal transport between gold nanorods
94 > and solvent\cite{doi:10.1021/jp8051888}; Juv\'e {\it et al.} studied
95 > the cooling dynamics, which is controlled by thermal interface
96 > resistence of glass-embedded metal
97 > nanoparticles\cite{PhysRevB.80.195406}. Although interfaces are
98 > commonly barriers for heat transport, Alper {\it et al.} suggested
99 > that specific ligands (capping agents) could completely eliminate this
100 > barrier ($G\rightarrow\infty$)\cite{doi:10.1021/la904855s}.
101 >
102 > Theoretical and computational models have also been used to study the
103 > interfacial thermal transport in order to gain an understanding of
104 > this phenomena at the molecular level. Recently, Hase and coworkers
105 > employed Non-Equilibrium Molecular Dynamics (NEMD) simulations to
106 > study thermal transport from hot Au(111) substrate to a self-assembled
107 > monolayer of alkylthiol with relatively long chain (8-20 carbon
108 > atoms)\cite{hase:2010,hase:2011}. However, ensemble averaged
109 > measurements for heat conductance of interfaces between the capping
110 > monolayer on Au and a solvent phase has yet to be studied.
111 > The comparatively low thermal flux through interfaces is
112 > difficult to measure with Equilibrium MD or forward NEMD simulation
113 > methods. Therefore, the Reverse NEMD (RNEMD) methods would have the
114 > advantage of having this difficult to measure flux known when studying
115 > the thermal transport across interfaces, given that the simulation
116 > methods being able to effectively apply an unphysical flux in
117 > non-homogeneous systems.
118 >
119 > Recently, we have developed the Non-Isotropic Velocity Scaling (NIVS)
120 > algorithm for RNEMD simulations\cite{kuang:164101}. This algorithm
121 > retains the desirable features of RNEMD (conservation of linear
122 > momentum and total energy, compatibility with periodic boundary
123 > conditions) while establishing true thermal distributions in each of
124 > the two slabs. Furthermore, it allows effective thermal exchange
125 > between particles of different identities, and thus makes the study of
126 > interfacial conductance much simpler.
127 >
128 > The work presented here deals with the Au(111) surface covered to
129 > varying degrees by butanethiol, a capping agent with short carbon
130 > chain, and solvated with organic solvents of different molecular
131 > properties. Different models were used for both the capping agent and
132 > the solvent force field parameters. Using the NIVS algorithm, the
133 > thermal transport across these interfaces was studied and the
134 > underlying mechanism for this phenomena was investigated.
135 >
136 > [MAY ADD WHY STUDY AU-THIOL SURFACE; CITE SHAOYI JIANG]
137 >
138 > \section{Methodology}
139 > \subsection{Imposd-Flux Methods in MD Simulations}
140 > For systems with low interfacial conductivity one must have a method
141 > capable of generating relatively small fluxes, compared to those
142 > required for bulk conductivity. This requirement makes the calculation
143 > even more difficult for those slowly-converging equilibrium
144 > methods\cite{Viscardy:2007lq}.
145 > Forward methods impose gradient, but in interfacail conditions it is
146 > not clear what behavior to impose at the boundary...
147 > Imposed-flux reverse non-equilibrium
148 > methods\cite{MullerPlathe:1997xw} have the flux set {\it a priori} and
149 > the thermal response becomes easier to
150 > measure than the flux. Although M\"{u}ller-Plathe's original momentum
151 > swapping approach can be used for exchanging energy between particles
152 > of different identity, the kinetic energy transfer efficiency is
153 > affected by the mass difference between the particles, which limits
154 > its application on heterogeneous interfacial systems.
155 >
156 > The non-isotropic velocity scaling (NIVS)\cite{kuang:164101} approach to
157 > non-equilibrium MD simulations is able to impose a wide range of
158 > kinetic energy fluxes without obvious perturbation to the velocity
159 > distributions of the simulated systems. Furthermore, this approach has
160 > the advantage in heterogeneous interfaces in that kinetic energy flux
161 > can be applied between regions of particles of arbitary identity, and
162 > the flux will not be restricted by difference in particle mass.
163 >
164 > The NIVS algorithm scales the velocity vectors in two separate regions
165 > of a simulation system with respective diagonal scaling matricies. To
166 > determine these scaling factors in the matricies, a set of equations
167 > including linear momentum conservation and kinetic energy conservation
168 > constraints and target energy flux satisfaction is solved. With the
169 > scaling operation applied to the system in a set frequency, bulk
170 > temperature gradients can be easily established, and these can be used
171 > for computing thermal conductivities. The NIVS algorithm conserves
172 > momenta and energy and does not depend on an external thermostat.
173 >
174 > \subsection{Defining Interfacial Thermal Conductivity $G$}
175 > For interfaces with a relatively low interfacial conductance, the bulk
176 > regions on either side of an interface rapidly come to a state in
177 > which the two phases have relatively homogeneous (but distinct)
178 > temperatures. The interfacial thermal conductivity $G$ can therefore
179 > be approximated as:
180 > \begin{equation}
181 > G = \frac{E_{total}}{2 t L_x L_y \left( \langle T_\mathrm{hot}\rangle -
182 >    \langle T_\mathrm{cold}\rangle \right)}
183 > \label{lowG}
184 > \end{equation}
185 > where ${E_{total}}$ is the imposed non-physical kinetic energy
186 > transfer and ${\langle T_\mathrm{hot}\rangle}$ and ${\langle
187 >  T_\mathrm{cold}\rangle}$ are the average observed temperature of the
188 > two separated phases.
189 >
190 > When the interfacial conductance is {\it not} small, there are two
191 > ways to define $G$.
192 >
193 > One way is to assume the temperature is discrete on the two sides of
194 > the interface. $G$ can be calculated using the applied thermal flux
195 > $J$ and the maximum temperature difference measured along the thermal
196 > gradient max($\Delta T$), which occurs at the Gibbs deviding surface,
197 > as:
198 > \begin{equation}
199 > G=\frac{J}{\Delta T}
200 > \label{discreteG}
201 > \end{equation}
202 >
203 > The other approach is to assume a continuous temperature profile along
204 > the thermal gradient axis (e.g. $z$) and define $G$ at the point where
205 > the magnitude of thermal conductivity $\lambda$ change reach its
206 > maximum, given that $\lambda$ is well-defined throughout the space:
207 > \begin{equation}
208 > G^\prime = \Big|\frac{\partial\lambda}{\partial z}\Big|
209 >         = \Big|\frac{\partial}{\partial z}\left(-J_z\Big/
210 >           \left(\frac{\partial T}{\partial z}\right)\right)\Big|
211 >         = |J_z|\Big|\frac{\partial^2 T}{\partial z^2}\Big|
212 >         \Big/\left(\frac{\partial T}{\partial z}\right)^2
213 > \label{derivativeG}
214 > \end{equation}
215 >
216 > With the temperature profile obtained from simulations, one is able to
217 > approximate the first and second derivatives of $T$ with finite
218 > difference methods and thus calculate $G^\prime$.
219 >
220 > In what follows, both definitions have been used for calculation and
221 > are compared in the results.
222 >
223 > To compare the above definitions ($G$ and $G^\prime$), we have modeled
224 > a metal slab with its (111) surfaces perpendicular to the $z$-axis of
225 > our simulation cells. Both with and withour capping agents on the
226 > surfaces, the metal slab is solvated with simple organic solvents, as
227 > illustrated in Figure \ref{demoPic}.
228 >
229 > \begin{figure}
230 > \includegraphics[width=\linewidth]{method}
231 > \caption{Interfacial conductance can be calculated by applying an
232 >  (unphysical) kinetic energy flux between two slabs, one located
233 >  within the metal and another on the edge of the periodic box.  The
234 >  system responds by forming a thermal response or a gradient.  In
235 >  bulk liquids, this gradient typically has a single slope, but in
236 >  interfacial systems, there are distinct thermal conductivity
237 >  domains.  The interfacial conductance, $G$ is found by measuring the
238 >  temperature gap at the Gibbs dividing surface, or by using second
239 >  derivatives of the thermal profile.}
240 > \label{demoPic}
241 > \end{figure}
242 >
243 > With the simulation cell described above, we are able to equilibrate
244 > the system and impose an unphysical thermal flux between the liquid
245 > and the metal phase using the NIVS algorithm. By periodically applying
246 > the unphysical flux, we are able to obtain a temperature profile and
247 > its spatial derivatives. These quantities enable the evaluation of the
248 > interfacial thermal conductance of a surface. Figure \ref{gradT} is an
249 > example how those applied thermal fluxes can be used to obtain the 1st
250 > and 2nd derivatives of the temperature profile.
251 >
252 > \begin{figure}
253 > \includegraphics[width=\linewidth]{gradT}
254 > \caption{The 1st and 2nd derivatives of temperature profile can be
255 >  obtained with finite difference approximation.}
256 > \label{gradT}
257 > \end{figure}
258 >
259 > \section{Computational Details}
260 > \subsection{Simulation Protocol}
261 > The NIVS algorithm has been implemented in our MD simulation code,
262 > OpenMD\cite{Meineke:2005gd,openmd}, and was used for our
263 > simulations. Different slab thickness (layer numbers of Au) were
264 > simulated. Metal slabs were first equilibrated under atmospheric
265 > pressure (1 atm) and a desired temperature (e.g. 200K). After
266 > equilibration, butanethiol capping agents were placed at three-fold
267 > sites on the Au(111) surfaces. The maximum butanethiol capacity on Au
268 > surface is $1/3$ of the total number of surface Au
269 > atoms\cite{vlugt:cpc2007154}. A series of different coverages was
270 > investigated in order to study the relation between coverage and
271 > interfacial conductance.
272 >
273 > The capping agent molecules were allowed to migrate during the
274 > simulations. They distributed themselves uniformly and sampled a
275 > number of three-fold sites throughout out study. Therefore, the
276 > initial configuration would not noticeably affect the sampling of a
277 > variety of configurations of the same coverage, and the final
278 > conductance measurement would be an average effect of these
279 > configurations explored in the simulations. [MAY NEED FIGURES]
280 >
281 > After the modified Au-butanethiol surface systems were equilibrated
282 > under canonical ensemble, organic solvent molecules were packed in the
283 > previously empty part of the simulation cells\cite{packmol}. Two
284 > solvents were investigated, one which has little vibrational overlap
285 > with the alkanethiol and a planar shape (toluene), and one which has
286 > similar vibrational frequencies and chain-like shape ({\it n}-hexane).
287 >
288 > The space filled by solvent molecules, i.e. the gap between
289 > periodically repeated Au-butanethiol surfaces should be carefully
290 > chosen. A very long length scale for the thermal gradient axis ($z$)
291 > may cause excessively hot or cold temperatures in the middle of the
292 > solvent region and lead to undesired phenomena such as solvent boiling
293 > or freezing when a thermal flux is applied. Conversely, too few
294 > solvent molecules would change the normal behavior of the liquid
295 > phase. Therefore, our $N_{solvent}$ values were chosen to ensure that
296 > these extreme cases did not happen to our simulations. And the
297 > corresponding spacing is usually $35 \sim 60$\AA.
298 >
299 > The initial configurations generated by Packmol are further
300 > equilibrated with the $x$ and $y$ dimensions fixed, only allowing
301 > length scale change in $z$ dimension. This is to ensure that the
302 > equilibration of liquid phase does not affect the metal crystal
303 > structure in $x$ and $y$ dimensions. Further equilibration are run
304 > under NVT and then NVE ensembles.
305 >
306 > After the systems reach equilibrium, NIVS is implemented to impose a
307 > periodic unphysical thermal flux between the metal and the liquid
308 > phase. Most of our simulations are under an average temperature of
309 > $\sim$200K. Therefore, this flux usually comes from the metal to the
310 > liquid so that the liquid has a higher temperature and would not
311 > freeze due to excessively low temperature. This induced temperature
312 > gradient is stablized and the simulation cell is devided evenly into
313 > N slabs along the $z$-axis and the temperatures of each slab are
314 > recorded. When the slab width $d$ of each slab is the same, the
315 > derivatives of $T$ with respect to slab number $n$ can be directly
316 > used for $G^\prime$ calculations:
317 > \begin{equation}
318 > G^\prime = |J_z|\Big|\frac{\partial^2 T}{\partial z^2}\Big|
319 >         \Big/\left(\frac{\partial T}{\partial z}\right)^2
320 >         = |J_z|\Big|\frac{1}{d^2}\frac{\partial^2 T}{\partial n^2}\Big|
321 >         \Big/\left(\frac{1}{d}\frac{\partial T}{\partial n}\right)^2
322 >         = |J_z|\Big|\frac{\partial^2 T}{\partial n^2}\Big|
323 >         \Big/\left(\frac{\partial T}{\partial n}\right)^2
324 > \label{derivativeG2}
325 > \end{equation}
326 >
327 > \subsection{Force Field Parameters}
328 > Our simulations include various components. Therefore, force field
329 > parameter descriptions are needed for interactions both between the
330 > same type of particles and between particles of different species.
331 >
332 > The Au-Au interactions in metal lattice slab is described by the
333 > quantum Sutton-Chen (QSC) formulation\cite{PhysRevB.59.3527}. The QSC
334 > potentials include zero-point quantum corrections and are
335 > reparametrized for accurate surface energies compared to the
336 > Sutton-Chen potentials\cite{Chen90}.
337 >
338 > Figure \ref{demoMol} demonstrates how we name our pseudo-atoms of the
339 > organic solvent molecules in our simulations.
340 >
341 > \begin{figure}
342 > \includegraphics[width=\linewidth]{structures}
343 > \caption{Structures of the capping agent and solvents utilized in
344 >  these simulations. The chemically-distinct sites (a-e) are expanded
345 >  in terms of constituent atoms for both United Atom (UA) and All Atom
346 >  (AA) force fields.  Most parameters are from
347 >  Refs. \protect\cite{TraPPE-UA.alkanes,TraPPE-UA.alkylbenzenes} (UA) and
348 >  \protect\cite{OPLSAA} (AA).  Cross-interactions with the Au atoms are given
349 >  in Table \ref{MnM}.}
350 > \label{demoMol}
351 > \end{figure}
352 >
353 > For both solvent molecules, straight chain {\it n}-hexane and aromatic
354 > toluene, United-Atom (UA) and All-Atom (AA) models are used
355 > respectively. The TraPPE-UA
356 > parameters\cite{TraPPE-UA.alkanes,TraPPE-UA.alkylbenzenes} are used
357 > for our UA solvent molecules. In these models, pseudo-atoms are
358 > located at the carbon centers for alkyl groups. By eliminating
359 > explicit hydrogen atoms, these models are simple and computationally
360 > efficient, while maintains good accuracy. However, the TraPPE-UA for
361 > alkanes is known to predict a lower boiling point than experimental
362 > values. Considering that after an unphysical thermal flux is applied
363 > to a system, the temperature of ``hot'' area in the liquid phase would be
364 > significantly higher than the average, to prevent over heating and
365 > boiling of the liquid phase, the average temperature in our
366 > simulations should be much lower than the liquid boiling point. [MORE DISCUSSION]
367 > For UA-toluene model, rigid body constraints are applied, so that the
368 > benzene ring and the methyl-CRar bond are kept rigid. This would save
369 > computational time.[MORE DETAILS]
370 >
371 > Besides the TraPPE-UA models, AA models for both organic solvents are
372 > included in our studies as well. For hexane, the OPLS-AA\cite{OPLSAA}
373 > force field is used. [MORE DETAILS]
374 > For toluene, the United Force Field developed by Rapp\'{e} {\it et
375 >  al.}\cite{doi:10.1021/ja00051a040} is adopted.[MORE DETAILS]
376 >
377 > The capping agent in our simulations, the butanethiol molecules can
378 > either use UA or AA model. The TraPPE-UA force fields includes
379 > parameters for thiol molecules\cite{TraPPE-UA.thiols} and are used for
380 > UA butanethiol model in our simulations. The OPLS-AA also provides
381 > parameters for alkyl thiols. However, alkyl thiols adsorbed on Au(111)
382 > surfaces do not have the hydrogen atom bonded to sulfur. To adapt this
383 > change and derive suitable parameters for butanethiol adsorbed on
384 > Au(111) surfaces, we adopt the S parameters from Luedtke and
385 > Landman\cite{landman:1998} and modify parameters for its neighbor C
386 > atom for charge balance in the molecule. Note that the model choice
387 > (UA or AA) of capping agent can be different from the
388 > solvent. Regardless of model choice, the force field parameters for
389 > interactions between capping agent and solvent can be derived using
390 > Lorentz-Berthelot Mixing Rule:
391 > \begin{eqnarray}
392 > \sigma_{ij} & = & \frac{1}{2} \left(\sigma_{ii} + \sigma_{jj}\right) \\
393 > \epsilon_{ij} & = & \sqrt{\epsilon_{ii}\epsilon_{jj}}
394 > \end{eqnarray}
395 >
396 > To describe the interactions between metal Au and non-metal capping
397 > agent and solvent particles, we refer to an adsorption study of alkyl
398 > thiols on gold surfaces by Vlugt {\it et
399 >  al.}\cite{vlugt:cpc2007154} They fitted an effective Lennard-Jones
400 > form of potential parameters for the interaction between Au and
401 > pseudo-atoms CH$_x$ and S based on a well-established and widely-used
402 > effective potential of Hautman and Klein\cite{hautman:4994} for the
403 > Au(111) surface. As our simulations require the gold lattice slab to
404 > be non-rigid so that it could accommodate kinetic energy for thermal
405 > transport study purpose, the pair-wise form of potentials is
406 > preferred.
407 >
408 > Besides, the potentials developed from {\it ab initio} calculations by
409 > Leng {\it et al.}\cite{doi:10.1021/jp034405s} are adopted for the
410 > interactions between Au and aromatic C/H atoms in toluene.[MORE DETAILS]
411 >
412 > However, the Lennard-Jones parameters between Au and other types of
413 > particles in our simulations are not yet well-established. For these
414 > interactions, we attempt to derive their parameters using the Mixing
415 > Rule. To do this, the ``Metal-non-Metal'' (MnM) interaction parameters
416 > for Au is first extracted from the Au-CH$_x$ parameters by applying
417 > the Mixing Rule reversely. Table \ref{MnM} summarizes these ``MnM''
418 > parameters in our simulations.
419 >
420 > \begin{table*}
421 >  \begin{minipage}{\linewidth}
422 >    \begin{center}
423 >      \caption{Non-bonded interaction parameters (including cross
424 >        interactions with Au atoms) for both force fields used in this
425 >        work.}      
426 >      \begin{tabular}{lllllll}
427 >        \hline\hline
428 >        & Site  & $\sigma_{ii}$ & $\epsilon_{ii}$ & $q_i$ &
429 >        $\sigma_{Au-i}$ & $\epsilon_{Au-i}$ \\
430 >        & & (\AA) & (kcal/mol) & ($e$) & (\AA) & (kcal/mol) \\
431 >        \hline
432 >        United Atom (UA)
433 >        &CH3  & 3.75  & 0.1947  & -      & 3.54   & 0.2146  \\
434 >        &CH2  & 3.95  & 0.0914  & -      & 3.54   & 0.1749  \\
435 >        &CHar & 3.695 & 0.1003  & -      & 3.4625 & 0.1680  \\
436 >        &CRar & 3.88  & 0.04173 & -      & 3.555  & 0.1604  \\
437 >        \hline
438 >        All Atom (AA)
439 >        &CT3  & 3.50  & 0.066   & -0.18  & 3.365  & 0.1373  \\
440 >        &CT2  & 3.50  & 0.066   & -0.12  & 3.365  & 0.1373  \\
441 >        &CTT  & 3.50  & 0.066   & -0.065 & 3.365  & 0.1373  \\
442 >        &HC   & 2.50  & 0.030   &  0.06  & 2.865  & 0.09256 \\
443 >        &CA   & 3.55  & 0.070   & -0.115 & 3.173  & 0.0640  \\
444 >        &HA   & 2.42  & 0.030   &  0.115 & 2.746  & 0.0414  \\
445 >        \hline
446 >        Both UA and AA & S    & 4.45  & 0.25    & -      & 2.40   & 8.465   \\
447 >        \hline\hline
448 >      \end{tabular}
449 >      \label{MnM}
450 >    \end{center}
451 >  \end{minipage}
452 > \end{table*}
453 >
454 >
455 > \section{Results and Discussions}
456 > [MAY HAVE A BRIEF SUMMARY]
457 > \subsection{How Simulation Parameters Affects $G$}
458 > [MAY NOT PUT AT FIRST]
459 > We have varied our protocol or other parameters of the simulations in
460 > order to investigate how these factors would affect the measurement of
461 > $G$'s. It turned out that while some of these parameters would not
462 > affect the results substantially, some other changes to the
463 > simulations would have a significant impact on the measurement
464 > results.
465 >
466 > In some of our simulations, we allowed $L_x$ and $L_y$ to change
467 > during equilibrating the liquid phase. Due to the stiffness of the Au
468 > slab, $L_x$ and $L_y$ would not change noticeably after
469 > equilibration. Although $L_z$ could fluctuate $\sim$1\% after a system
470 > is fully equilibrated in the NPT ensemble, this fluctuation, as well
471 > as those comparably smaller to $L_x$ and $L_y$, would not be magnified
472 > on the calculated $G$'s, as shown in Table \ref{AuThiolHexaneUA}. This
473 > insensivity to $L_i$ fluctuations allows reliable measurement of $G$'s
474 > without the necessity of extremely cautious equilibration process.
475  
476 + As stated in our computational details, the spacing filled with
477 + solvent molecules can be chosen within a range. This allows some
478 + change of solvent molecule numbers for the same Au-butanethiol
479 + surfaces. We did this study on our Au-butanethiol/hexane
480 + simulations. Nevertheless, the results obtained from systems of
481 + different $N_{hexane}$ did not indicate that the measurement of $G$ is
482 + susceptible to this parameter. For computational efficiency concern,
483 + smaller system size would be preferable, given that the liquid phase
484 + structure is not affected.
485 +
486 + Our NIVS algorithm allows change of unphysical thermal flux both in
487 + direction and in quantity. This feature extends our investigation of
488 + interfacial thermal conductance. However, the magnitude of this
489 + thermal flux is not arbitary if one aims to obtain a stable and
490 + reliable thermal gradient. A temperature profile would be
491 + substantially affected by noise when $|J_z|$ has a much too low
492 + magnitude; while an excessively large $|J_z|$ that overwhelms the
493 + conductance capacity of the interface would prevent a thermal gradient
494 + to reach a stablized steady state. NIVS has the advantage of allowing
495 + $J$ to vary in a wide range such that the optimal flux range for $G$
496 + measurement can generally be simulated by the algorithm. Within the
497 + optimal range, we were able to study how $G$ would change according to
498 + the thermal flux across the interface. For our simulations, we denote
499 + $J_z$ to be positive when the physical thermal flux is from the liquid
500 + to metal, and negative vice versa. The $G$'s measured under different
501 + $J_z$ is listed in Table \ref{AuThiolHexaneUA} and [REF]. These
502 + results do not suggest that $G$ is dependent on $J_z$ within this flux
503 + range. The linear response of flux to thermal gradient simplifies our
504 + investigations in that we can rely on $G$ measurement with only a
505 + couple $J_z$'s and do not need to test a large series of fluxes.
506 +
507 + [LOW FLUX, LARGE ERROR]
508 + \begin{table*}
509 +  \begin{minipage}{\linewidth}
510 +    \begin{center}
511 +      \caption{Computed interfacial thermal conductivity ($G$ and
512 +        $G^\prime$) values for the 100\% covered Au-butanethiol/hexane
513 +        interfaces with UA model and different hexane molecule numbers
514 +        at different temperatures using a range of energy fluxes.}
515 +      
516 +      \begin{tabular}{ccccccc}
517 +        \hline\hline
518 +        $\langle T\rangle$ & $N_{hexane}$ & Fixed & $\rho_{hexane}$ &
519 +        $J_z$ & $G$ & $G^\prime$ \\
520 +        (K) & & $L_x$ \& $L_y$? & (g/cm$^3$) & (GW/m$^2$) &
521 +        \multicolumn{2}{c}{(MW/m$^2$/K)} \\
522 +        \hline
523 +        200 & 266 & No  & 0.672 & -0.96 & 102()     & 80.0()    \\
524 +            & 200 & Yes & 0.694 &  1.92 & 129(11)   & 87.3(0.3) \\
525 +            &     & Yes & 0.672 &  1.93 & 131(16)   & 78(13)    \\
526 +            &     & No  & 0.688 &  0.96 & 125()     & 90.2()    \\
527 +            &     &     &       &  1.91 & 139(10)   & 101(10)   \\
528 +            &     &     &       &  2.83 & 141(6)    & 89.9(9.8) \\
529 +            & 166 & Yes & 0.679 &  0.97 & 115(19)   & 69(18)    \\
530 +            &     &     &       &  1.94 & 125(9)    & 87.1(0.2) \\
531 +            &     & No  & 0.681 &  0.97 & 141(30)   & 78(22)    \\
532 +            &     &     &       &  1.92 & 138(4)    & 98.9(9.5) \\
533 +        \hline
534 +        250 & 200 & No  & 0.560 &  0.96 & 75(10)    & 61.8(7.3) \\
535 +            &     &     &       & -0.95 & 49.4(0.3) & 45.7(2.1) \\
536 +            & 166 & Yes & 0.570 &  0.98 & 79.0(3.5) & 62.9(3.0) \\
537 +            &     & No  & 0.569 &  0.97 & 80.3(0.6) & 67(11)    \\
538 +            &     &     &       &  1.44 & 76.2(5.0) & 64.8(3.8) \\
539 +            &     &     &       & -0.95 & 56.4(2.5) & 54.4(1.1) \\
540 +            &     &     &       & -1.85 & 47.8(1.1) & 53.5(1.5) \\
541 +        \hline\hline
542 +      \end{tabular}
543 +      \label{AuThiolHexaneUA}
544 +    \end{center}
545 +  \end{minipage}
546 + \end{table*}
547 +
548 + Furthermore, we also attempted to increase system average temperatures
549 + to above 200K. These simulations are first equilibrated in the NPT
550 + ensemble under normal pressure. As stated above, the TraPPE-UA model
551 + for hexane tends to predict a lower boiling point. In our simulations,
552 + hexane had diffculty to remain in liquid phase when NPT equilibration
553 + temperature is higher than 250K. Additionally, the equilibrated liquid
554 + hexane density under 250K becomes lower than experimental value. This
555 + expanded liquid phase leads to lower contact between hexane and
556 + butanethiol as well.[MAY NEED FIGURE] And this reduced contact would
557 + probably be accountable for a lower interfacial thermal conductance,
558 + as shown in Table \ref{AuThiolHexaneUA}.
559 +
560 + A similar study for TraPPE-UA toluene agrees with the above result as
561 + well. Having a higher boiling point, toluene tends to remain liquid in
562 + our simulations even equilibrated under 300K in NPT
563 + ensembles. Furthermore, the expansion of the toluene liquid phase is
564 + not as significant as that of the hexane. This prevents severe
565 + decrease of liquid-capping agent contact and the results (Table
566 + \ref{AuThiolToluene}) show only a slightly decreased interface
567 + conductance. Therefore, solvent-capping agent contact should play an
568 + important role in the thermal transport process across the interface
569 + in that higher degree of contact could yield increased conductance.
570 +
571 + [ADD ERROR ESTIMATE TO TABLE]
572 + \begin{table*}
573 +  \begin{minipage}{\linewidth}
574 +    \begin{center}
575 +      \caption{Computed interfacial thermal conductivity ($G$ and
576 +        $G^\prime$) values for a 90\% coverage Au-butanethiol/toluene
577 +        interface at different temperatures using a range of energy
578 +        fluxes.}
579 +      
580 +      \begin{tabular}{ccccc}
581 +        \hline\hline
582 +        $\langle T\rangle$ & $\rho_{toluene}$ & $J_z$ & $G$ & $G^\prime$ \\
583 +        (K) & (g/cm$^3$) & (GW/m$^2$) & \multicolumn{2}{c}{(MW/m$^2$/K)} \\
584 +        \hline
585 +        200 & 0.933 & -1.86 & 180() & 135() \\
586 +            &       &  2.15 & 204() & 113() \\
587 +            &       & -3.93 & 175() & 114() \\
588 +        \hline
589 +        300 & 0.855 & -1.91 & 143() & 125() \\
590 +            &       & -4.19 & 134() & 113() \\
591 +        \hline\hline
592 +      \end{tabular}
593 +      \label{AuThiolToluene}
594 +    \end{center}
595 +  \end{minipage}
596 + \end{table*}
597 +
598 + Besides lower interfacial thermal conductance, surfaces in relatively
599 + high temperatures are susceptible to reconstructions, when
600 + butanethiols have a full coverage on the Au(111) surface. These
601 + reconstructions include surface Au atoms migrated outward to the S
602 + atom layer, and butanethiol molecules embedded into the original
603 + surface Au layer. The driving force for this behavior is the strong
604 + Au-S interactions in our simulations. And these reconstructions lead
605 + to higher ratio of Au-S attraction and thus is energetically
606 + favorable. Furthermore, this phenomenon agrees with experimental
607 + results\cite{doi:10.1021/j100035a033,doi:10.1021/la026493y}. Vlugt
608 + {\it et al.} had kept their Au(111) slab rigid so that their
609 + simulations can reach 300K without surface reconstructions. Without
610 + this practice, simulating 100\% thiol covered interfaces under higher
611 + temperatures could hardly avoid surface reconstructions. However, our
612 + measurement is based on assuming homogeneity on $x$ and $y$ dimensions
613 + so that measurement of $T$ at particular $z$ would be an effective
614 + average of the particles of the same type. Since surface
615 + reconstructions could eliminate the original $x$ and $y$ dimensional
616 + homogeneity, measurement of $G$ is more difficult to conduct under
617 + higher temperatures. Therefore, most of our measurements are
618 + undertaken at $\langle T\rangle\sim$200K.
619 +
620 + However, when the surface is not completely covered by butanethiols,
621 + the simulated system is more resistent to the reconstruction
622 + above. Our Au-butanethiol/toluene system did not see this phenomena
623 + even at $\langle T\rangle\sim$300K. The Au(111) surfaces have a 90\%
624 + coverage of butanethiols and have empty three-fold sites. These empty
625 + sites could help prevent surface reconstruction in that they provide
626 + other means of capping agent relaxation. It is observed that
627 + butanethiols can migrate to their neighbor empty sites during a
628 + simulation. Therefore, we were able to obtain $G$'s for these
629 + interfaces even at a relatively high temperature without being
630 + affected by surface reconstructions.
631 +
632 + \subsection{Influence of Capping Agent Coverage on $G$}
633 + To investigate the influence of butanethiol coverage on interfacial
634 + thermal conductance, a series of different coverage Au-butanethiol
635 + surfaces is prepared and solvated with various organic
636 + molecules. These systems are then equilibrated and their interfacial
637 + thermal conductivity are measured with our NIVS algorithm. Table
638 + \ref{tlnUhxnUhxnD} lists these results for direct comparison between
639 + different coverages of butanethiol. To study the isotope effect in
640 + interfacial thermal conductance, deuterated UA-hexane is included as
641 + well.
642 +
643 + It turned out that with partial covered butanethiol on the Au(111)
644 + surface, the derivative definition for $G$ (Eq. \ref{derivativeG}) has
645 + difficulty to apply, due to the difficulty in locating the maximum of
646 + change of $\lambda$. Instead, the discrete definition
647 + (Eq. \ref{discreteG}) is easier to apply, as max($\Delta T$) can still
648 + be well-defined. Therefore, $G$'s (not $G^\prime$) are used for this
649 + section.
650 +
651 + From Table \ref{tlnUhxnUhxnD}, one can see the significance of the
652 + presence of capping agents. Even when a fraction of the Au(111)
653 + surface sites are covered with butanethiols, the conductivity would
654 + see an enhancement by at least a factor of 3. This indicates the
655 + important role cappping agent is playing for thermal transport
656 + phenomena on metal/organic solvent surfaces.
657 +
658 + Interestingly, as one could observe from our results, the maximum
659 + conductance enhancement (largest $G$) happens while the surfaces are
660 + about 75\% covered with butanethiols. This again indicates that
661 + solvent-capping agent contact has an important role of the thermal
662 + transport process. Slightly lower butanethiol coverage allows small
663 + gaps between butanethiols to form. And these gaps could be filled with
664 + solvent molecules, which acts like ``heat conductors'' on the
665 + surface. The higher degree of interaction between these solvent
666 + molecules and capping agents increases the enhancement effect and thus
667 + produces a higher $G$ than densely packed butanethiol arrays. However,
668 + once this maximum conductance enhancement is reached, $G$ decreases
669 + when butanethiol coverage continues to decrease. Each capping agent
670 + molecule reaches its maximum capacity for thermal
671 + conductance. Therefore, even higher solvent-capping agent contact
672 + would not offset this effect. Eventually, when butanethiol coverage
673 + continues to decrease, solvent-capping agent contact actually
674 + decreases with the disappearing of butanethiol molecules. In this
675 + case, $G$ decrease could not be offset but instead accelerated.
676 +
677 + A comparison of the results obtained from differenet organic solvents
678 + can also provide useful information of the interfacial thermal
679 + transport process. The deuterated hexane (UA) results do not appear to
680 + be much different from those of normal hexane (UA), given that
681 + butanethiol (UA) is non-deuterated for both solvents. These UA model
682 + studies, even though eliminating C-H vibration samplings, still have
683 + C-C vibrational frequencies different from each other. However, these
684 + differences in the infrared range do not seem to produce an observable
685 + difference for the results of $G$. [MAY NEED FIGURE]
686 +
687 + Furthermore, results for rigid body toluene solvent, as well as other
688 + UA-hexane solvents, are reasonable within the general experimental
689 + ranges[CITATIONS]. This suggests that explicit hydrogen might not be a
690 + required factor for modeling thermal transport phenomena of systems
691 + such as Au-thiol/organic solvent.
692 +
693 + However, results for Au-butanethiol/toluene do not show an identical
694 + trend with those for Au-butanethiol/hexane in that $G$'s remain at
695 + approximately the same magnitue when butanethiol coverage differs from
696 + 25\% to 75\%. This might be rooted in the molecule shape difference
697 + for plane-like toluene and chain-like {\it n}-hexane. Due to this
698 + difference, toluene molecules have more difficulty in occupying
699 + relatively small gaps among capping agents when their coverage is not
700 + too low. Therefore, the solvent-capping agent contact may keep
701 + increasing until the capping agent coverage reaches a relatively low
702 + level. This becomes an offset for decreasing butanethiol molecules on
703 + its effect to the process of interfacial thermal transport. Thus, one
704 + can see a plateau of $G$ vs. butanethiol coverage in our results.
705 +
706 + \begin{figure}
707 + \includegraphics[width=\linewidth]{coverage}
708 + \caption{Comparison of interfacial thermal conductivity ($G$) values
709 +  for the Au-butanethiol/solvent interface with various UA models and
710 +  different capping agent coverages at $\langle T\rangle\sim$200K
711 +  using certain energy flux respectively.}
712 + \label{coverage}
713 + \end{figure}
714 +
715 + \subsection{Influence of Chosen Molecule Model on $G$}
716 + [MAY COMBINE W MECHANISM STUDY]
717 +
718 + In addition to UA solvent/capping agent models, AA models are included
719 + in our simulations as well. Besides simulations of the same (UA or AA)
720 + model for solvent and capping agent, different models can be applied
721 + to different components. Furthermore, regardless of models chosen,
722 + either the solvent or the capping agent can be deuterated, similar to
723 + the previous section. Table \ref{modelTest} summarizes the results of
724 + these studies.
725 +
726 + \begin{table*}
727 +  \begin{minipage}{\linewidth}
728 +    \begin{center}
729 +      
730 +      \caption{Computed interfacial thermal conductivity ($G$ and
731 +        $G^\prime$) values for interfaces using various models for
732 +        solvent and capping agent (or without capping agent) at
733 +        $\langle T\rangle\sim$200K. (D stands for deuterated solvent
734 +        or capping agent molecules; ``Avg.'' denotes results that are
735 +        averages of simulations under different $J_z$'s. Error
736 +        estimates indicated in parenthesis.)}
737 +      
738 +      \begin{tabular}{llccc}
739 +        \hline\hline
740 +        Butanethiol model & Solvent & $J_z$ & $G$ & $G^\prime$ \\
741 +        (or bare surface) & model & (GW/m$^2$) &
742 +        \multicolumn{2}{c}{(MW/m$^2$/K)} \\
743 +        \hline
744 +        UA    & UA hexane    & Avg. & 131(9)    & 87(10)    \\
745 +              & UA hexane(D) & 1.95 & 153(5)    & 136(13)   \\
746 +              & AA hexane    & Avg. & 131(6)    & 122(10)   \\
747 +              & UA toluene   & 1.96 & 187(16)   & 151(11)   \\
748 +              & AA toluene   & 1.89 & 200(36)   & 149(53)   \\
749 +        \hline
750 +        AA    & UA hexane    & 1.94 & 116(9)    & 129(8)    \\
751 +              & AA hexane    & Avg. & 442(14)   & 356(31)   \\
752 +              & AA hexane(D) & 1.93 & 222(12)   & 234(54)   \\
753 +              & UA toluene   & 1.98 & 125(25)   & 97(60)    \\
754 +              & AA toluene   & 3.79 & 487(56)   & 290(42)   \\
755 +        \hline
756 +        AA(D) & UA hexane    & 1.94 & 158(25)   & 172(4)    \\
757 +              & AA hexane    & 1.92 & 243(29)   & 191(11)   \\
758 +              & AA toluene   & 1.93 & 364(36)   & 322(67)   \\
759 +        \hline
760 +        bare  & UA hexane    & Avg. & 46.5(3.2) & 49.4(4.5) \\
761 +              & UA hexane(D) & 0.98 & 43.9(4.6) & 43.0(2.0) \\
762 +              & AA hexane    & 0.96 & 31.0(1.4) & 29.4(1.3) \\
763 +              & UA toluene   & 1.99 & 70.1(1.3) & 65.8(0.5) \\
764 +        \hline\hline
765 +      \end{tabular}
766 +      \label{modelTest}
767 +    \end{center}
768 +  \end{minipage}
769 + \end{table*}
770 +
771 + To facilitate direct comparison, the same system with differnt models
772 + for different components uses the same length scale for their
773 + simulation cells. Without the presence of capping agent, using
774 + different models for hexane yields similar results for both $G$ and
775 + $G^\prime$, and these two definitions agree with eath other very
776 + well. This indicates very weak interaction between the metal and the
777 + solvent, and is a typical case for acoustic impedance mismatch between
778 + these two phases.
779 +
780 + As for Au(111) surfaces completely covered by butanethiols, the choice
781 + of models for capping agent and solvent could impact the measurement
782 + of $G$ and $G^\prime$ quite significantly. For Au-butanethiol/hexane
783 + interfaces, using AA model for both butanethiol and hexane yields
784 + substantially higher conductivity values than using UA model for at
785 + least one component of the solvent and capping agent, which exceeds
786 + the upper bond of experimental value range. This is probably due to
787 + the classically treated C-H vibrations in the AA model, which should
788 + not be appreciably populated at normal temperatures. In comparison,
789 + once either the hexanes or the butanethiols are deuterated, one can
790 + see a significantly lower $G$ and $G^\prime$. In either of these
791 + cases, the C-H(D) vibrational overlap between the solvent and the
792 + capping agent is removed. [MAY NEED FIGURE] Conclusively, the
793 + improperly treated C-H vibration in the AA model produced
794 + over-predicted results accordingly. Compared to the AA model, the UA
795 + model yields more reasonable results with higher computational
796 + efficiency.
797 +
798 + However, for Au-butanethiol/toluene interfaces, having the AA
799 + butanethiol deuterated did not yield a significant change in the
800 + measurement results. Compared to the C-H vibrational overlap between
801 + hexane and butanethiol, both of which have alkyl chains, that overlap
802 + between toluene and butanethiol is not so significant and thus does
803 + not have as much contribution to the ``Intramolecular Vibration
804 + Redistribution''[CITE HASE]. Conversely, extra degrees of freedom such
805 + as the C-H vibrations could yield higher heat exchange rate between
806 + these two phases and result in a much higher conductivity.
807 +
808 + Although the QSC model for Au is known to predict an overly low value
809 + for bulk metal gold conductivity\cite{kuang:164101}, our computational
810 + results for $G$ and $G^\prime$ do not seem to be affected by this
811 + drawback of the model for metal. Instead, our results suggest that the
812 + modeling of interfacial thermal transport behavior relies mainly on
813 + the accuracy of the interaction descriptions between components
814 + occupying the interfaces.
815 +
816 + \subsection{Mechanism of Interfacial Thermal Conductance Enhancement
817 +  by Capping Agent}
818 + %OR\subsection{Vibrational spectrum study on conductance mechanism}
819 +
820 + [MAY INTRODUCE PROTOCOL IN METHODOLOGY/COMPUTATIONAL DETAIL, EQN'S]
821 +
822 + To investigate the mechanism of this interfacial thermal conductance,
823 + the vibrational spectra of various gold systems were obtained and are
824 + shown as in the upper panel of Fig. \ref{vibration}. To obtain these
825 + spectra, one first runs a simulation in the NVE ensemble and collects
826 + snapshots of configurations; these configurations are used to compute
827 + the velocity auto-correlation functions, which is used to construct a
828 + power spectrum via a Fourier transform.
829 +
830 + [MAY RELATE TO HASE'S]
831 + The gold surfaces covered by
832 + butanethiol molecules, compared to bare gold surfaces, exhibit an
833 + additional peak observed at a frequency of $\sim$170cm$^{-1}$, which
834 + is attributed to the vibration of the S-Au bond. This vibration
835 + enables efficient thermal transport from surface Au atoms to the
836 + capping agents. Simultaneously, as shown in the lower panel of
837 + Fig. \ref{vibration}, the large overlap of the vibration spectra of
838 + butanethiol and hexane in the all-atom model, including the C-H
839 + vibration, also suggests high thermal exchange efficiency. The
840 + combination of these two effects produces the drastic interfacial
841 + thermal conductance enhancement in the all-atom model.
842 +
843 + [REDO. MAY NEED TO CONVERT TO JPEG]
844 + \begin{figure}
845 + \includegraphics[width=\linewidth]{vibration}
846 + \caption{Vibrational spectra obtained for gold in different
847 +  environments (upper panel) and for Au/thiol/hexane simulation in
848 +  all-atom model (lower panel).}
849 + \label{vibration}
850 + \end{figure}
851 +
852 + [COMPARISON OF TWO G'S; AU SLAB WIDTHS; ETC]
853 + % The results show that the two definitions used for $G$ yield
854 + % comparable values, though $G^\prime$ tends to be smaller.
855 +
856 + \section{Conclusions}
857 + The NIVS algorithm we developed has been applied to simulations of
858 + Au-butanethiol surfaces with organic solvents. This algorithm allows
859 + effective unphysical thermal flux transferred between the metal and
860 + the liquid phase. With the flux applied, we were able to measure the
861 + corresponding thermal gradient and to obtain interfacial thermal
862 + conductivities. Our simulations have seen significant conductance
863 + enhancement with the presence of capping agent, compared to the bare
864 + gold/liquid interfaces. The acoustic impedance mismatch between the
865 + metal and the liquid phase is effectively eliminated by proper capping
866 + agent. Furthermore, the coverage precentage of the capping agent plays
867 + an important role in the interfacial thermal transport process.
868 +
869 + Our measurement results, particularly of the UA models, agree with
870 + available experimental data. This indicates that our force field
871 + parameters have a nice description of the interactions between the
872 + particles at the interfaces. AA models tend to overestimate the
873 + interfacial thermal conductance in that the classically treated C-H
874 + vibration would be overly sampled. Compared to the AA models, the UA
875 + models have higher computational efficiency with satisfactory
876 + accuracy, and thus are preferable in interfacial thermal transport
877 + modelings.
878 +
879 + Vlugt {\it et al.} has investigated the surface thiol structures for
880 + nanocrystal gold and pointed out that they differs from those of the
881 + Au(111) surface\cite{vlugt:cpc2007154}. This difference might lead to
882 + change of interfacial thermal transport behavior as well. To
883 + investigate this problem, an effective means to introduce thermal flux
884 + and measure the corresponding thermal gradient is desirable for
885 + simulating structures with spherical symmetry.
886 +
887 +
888   \section{Acknowledgments}
889   Support for this project was provided by the National Science
890   Foundation under grant CHE-0848243. Computational time was provided by
891   the Center for Research Computing (CRC) at the University of Notre
892 < Dame.  \newpage
892 > Dame. \newpage
893  
894   \bibliography{interfacial}
895  

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