Engineering a Quantum Thermal Diode with Floquet Driving

• URL: http://arxiv.org/abs/2607.25678v1
• Date: Tue, 28 Jul 2026 12:55:04 GMT
• Title: Engineering a Quantum Thermal Diode with Floquet Driving
• Abstract summary: Controlling heat flow in small quantum systems is a central goal of quantum thermodynamics and nanoscale transport.<n>A key challenge is to achieve strong thermal rectification without suppressing the transmitted heat current.<n>We establish a Floquet-control mechanism in a minimal quantum thermal diode formed by two longitudinally modulated Ising-coupled qubits.
• Score: 0.0
• License: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/
• Abstract: Controlling heat flow in small quantum systems is a central goal of quantum thermodynamics and nanoscale transport. A key challenge is to achieve strong thermal rectification without suppressing the transmitted heat current, a tradeoff that often arises in static diode configurations. We establish a Floquet-control mechanism in a minimal quantum thermal diode formed by two longitudinally modulated Ising-coupled qubits, each coupled to an independent thermal reservoir. From a microscopic system--bath model, we derive a Floquet--LGKS master equation that resolves the drive-assisted transition channels. The resonant undriven device with left--right symmetric bath couplings serves as the reciprocal benchmark, while static detuning provides a rectifying reference with reduced heat current. Single-side driving breaks this reciprocal structure by creating a Floquet-dressed contact opposite a purely thermal contact. For this configuration, we obtain a compact steady-state current formula and an exact blocking condition for suppressing one bias direction while retaining finite transport in the opposite direction. In the weak sinusoidal-drive regime, rectification begins quadratically in the modulation amplitude. Dual-side driving adds a Floquet pumping contribution to the interaction-mediated current, so complete blocking requires cancellation of both contributions. These results establish contact-selective Floquet dressing as a design principle for controllable heat-flow asymmetry in minimal quantum thermal devices.

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