Retardation and Diffraction Aspects of the Conduction of Heat in Solids

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Abstract
The concept of retardation of phase and energy propagation, borrowed from analyses used in physical optics, is applied to the analysis of heat conduction in solids. Analogies between physical optics and heat conduction in solids are pointed out and these are given a general interpretation in terms of a superposition of traveling waves. It is shown that interference effects may occur in the propagation of heat in a solid. Some of the notions of physical optics are then applied to the analysis of heat conduction in solids. A simple experiment demonstrating interference of traveling waves in heat conduction is analyzed. An analog to the Kirchhoff formula, exhibiting the role of diffraction effects in the conduction of heat in solids, is derived.

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