The near-field interaction between two neighboring particles is known to produce enhanced radiative heat transfer. We advance in the understanding of this phenomenon by including the full electromagnetic particle response, heat exchange with the environment, and important radiative corrections both in the distance dependence of the fields and in the particle absorption coefficients. We find that crossed terms of electric and magnetic interactions dominate the transfer rate between gold and SiC particles, whereas radiative corrections reduce it by several orders of magnitude even at small separations. Radiation away from the dimer can be strongly suppressed or enhanced at low and high temperatures, respectively. These effects must be taken into account for an accurate description of radiative heat transfer in nanostructured environments.

22 pages, 9 figures, fully self-contained derivations