Normal metal - superconductor tunnel junction as a Brownian refrigerator
Mesoscale and Nanoscale Physics
2009-11-13 v1
Abstract
Thermal noise generated by a hot resistor (resistance ) can, under proper conditions, catalyze heat removal from a cold normal metal (N) in contact with a superconductor (S) via a tunnel barrier. Such a NIS junction acts as Maxwell's demon, rectifying the heat flow. Upon reversal of the temperature gradient between the resistor and the junction the heat fluxes are reversed: this presents a regime which is not accessible in an ordinary voltage-biased NIS structure. We obtain analytical results for the cooling performance in an idealized high impedance environment, and perform numerical calculations for general . We conclude by assessing the experimental feasibility of the proposed effect.
Keywords
Cite
@article{arxiv.cond-mat/0702233,
title = {Normal metal - superconductor tunnel junction as a Brownian refrigerator},
author = {J. P. Pekola and F. W. J. Hekking},
journal= {arXiv preprint arXiv:cond-mat/0702233},
year = {2009}
}