Theories and heat pulse experiments of non-Fourier heat conduction (Q325606)

The author reviews heat conduction phenomena from the broader perspective of non-equilibrium thermodynamics. The performance of different theories is compared using the example of heat pulse experiments. The author makes two preliminary remarks to underline the particular point of view of this work. The first remark concerns the so-called heat conduction paradox of the infinite speed of signal propagation in Fourier theory. The second remark is about the role of non-equilibrium thermodynamics as the framework for several physical disciplines. Here the fundamental assumption is the validity of the second law of thermodynamics in the form of an entropy balance with nonnegative production. In the following, the author surveys the most important experimental observations of non-Fourier heat conduction. Then the relevant kinetic and thermodynamic theories are surveyed from the point of view of their performance in modeling ballistic and diffusive heat propagation. Their assumptions, properties and modeling capabilities are compared to the example of heat pulse experiments.