PreprintCC BY 4.0arXiv
The often overlooked role of sound in liquid thermal transport
Abstract
Formulated a hundred years ago, the Bridgman formula for thermal conductivity of liquids postulates a proportionality between sound velocity and thermal conductivity. This designates phonons as heat carriers in a liquid. Its empirical success has been under-appreciated and its conceptual implications overlooked. It is not mentioned in well-known condensed-matter textbook. Here, we review its origin, its links to hydrodynamic Euler equations and to the fundamental paradox surrounding the parabolic heat equation and its fate across the quantum-classical crossover.
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BibTeX
@misc{behnia2026often,
title = {{The often overlooked role of sound in liquid thermal transport}},
author = {Kamran Behnia},
howpublished = {arXiv},
year = {2026},
month = oct,
doi = {10.48550/arxiv.2610.31127},
eprint = {2610.31127},
archivePrefix = {arXiv},
url = {https://arxiv.org/abs/2610.31127},
note = {CC BY 4.0},
}
RIS
TY - UNPB
TI - The often overlooked role of sound in liquid thermal transport
AU - Kamran Behnia
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/10/22
PB - arXiv
DO - 10.48550/arxiv.2610.31127
UR - https://arxiv.org/abs/2610.31127
AB - Formulated a hundred years ago, the Bridgman formula for thermal conductivity of liquids postulates a proportionality between sound velocity and thermal conductivity. This designates phonons as heat carriers in a liquid. Its empirical success has been under-appreciated and its conceptual implications overlooked. It is not mentioned in well-known condensed-matter textbook. Here, we review its origin, its links to hydrodynamic Euler equations and to the fundamental paradox surrounding the parabolic heat equation and its fate across the quantum-classical crossover.
ER -