Near-field radiative heat transfer between two plane surfaces with one having a dielectric coating

The effect of a dielectric coating on the near-field radiative heat transfer between two plane surfaces is numerically studied in the framework of the fluctuational electrodynamics. The dielectric coating is assumed to be a SiC or SiO2 film, which is on top of the emitter. The results show that the near-field radiative flux between the plane surfaces can be either diminished or enhanced by the dielectric coating, depending on the thermal radiative properties of the emitter and the receiver. Furthermore, the dielectric coating effect on the near-field radiative flux can be very different from that on the far-field radiative flux. Detailed analysis on the variations of the TE- and TM-wave components of the radiative flux by adding the dielectric coating is provided, along with the physical mechanisms that account for these changes. Dielectric coatings such as SiC and SiO2 films are widely seen in microelectronic structures and nanofabrication devices. The results obtained in this work should be valuable for further study and nanotechnological applications of near-field radiative heat transfer. (C) 2009 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.