The thermoelectric effects of semiconductor quantum dots (QDs) embedded into an insulator matrix connected to metallic electrodes are theoretically investigated in the nonlinear response regime. A multilevel Anderson model is used to simulate the multiple QDs junction system. The charge and heat currents in the sequential tunneling process are calculated by the Keldysh Green's function technique. We have demonstrated that thermal rectification and negative differential thermal conductance behaviors can be observed for the multiple QD junction system in the absence of phonon heat current. (C) 2010 The Japan Society of Applied Physics
