Single-atom heat machines enabled by energy quantization
Quantum Physics
2018-09-10 v2
Abstract
Quantization of energy is a quintessential characteristic of quantum systems. Here we analyze its effects on the operation of Otto cycle heat machines and show that energy quantization alone may alter and increase machine performance in terms of output power, efficiency, and even operation mode. Our results demonstrate that quantum thermodynamics enable the realization of classically inconceivable Otto machines, such as those with an incompressible working fluid. We propose to measure these effects experimentally using a laser-cooled trapped ion as a microscopic heat machine.
Cite
@article{arxiv.1705.11180,
title = {Single-atom heat machines enabled by energy quantization},
author = {David Gelbwaser-Klimovsky and Alexei Bylinskii and Dorian Gangloff and Rajibul Islam and Alán Aspuru-Guzik and Vladan Vuletic},
journal= {arXiv preprint arXiv:1705.11180},
year = {2018}
}