Analytic approach to the (an)harmonic crystal chains with self-consistent stochastic reservoirs.

Abstract

We consider the harmonic and anharmonic chains of oscillators with self-consistent stochastic reservoirs and derive an integral representation (`a la Feynman–Kac) for the correlations, in particular, for the heat flow. For the harmonic chain, we give a new proof that its thermal conductivity is finite in the steady state. Based on this integral representation for the correlations and a perturbative analysis, the approach is quite general and can be extended to more intricate systems.