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Related papers: The Physics of Maxwell's demon and information

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Here we study the operation efficiency of a finite-size finite-response-time Maxwell's demon, who can make future predictions. We compare the heat and mass transport rate of predictive demons to non-predictive ones and find that predictive…

Statistical Mechanics · Physics 2021-01-04 Nathaniel Rupprecht , Dervis Vural

Nearly all theoretical analyses of the Maxwell's demon focus on its energetic and entropic costs of operation. Here, we focus on its rate of operation. In our model, a demon's rate limitation stems from its finite response time and gate…

Statistical Mechanics · Physics 2019-08-27 Nathaniel Rupprecht , Dervis Vural

I study an autonomous quantum Maxwell's demon based on two exchange-coupled quantum dots attached to the spin-polarized leads. The principle of operation of the demon is based on the coherent oscillations between the spin states of the…

Statistical Mechanics · Physics 2018-01-24 Krzysztof Ptaszynski

Although there is not a complete "proof" of the second law of thermo- dynamics based on microscopic dynamics, two properties of Hamiltonian systems have been used to prove the impossibility of work extraction from a single thermal…

Statistical Mechanics · Physics 2015-04-22 Juan M. R. Parrondo , Léo Granger

Maxwellian ratchets are autonomous, finite-state thermodynamic engines that implement input-output informational transformations. Previous studies of these "demons" focused on how they exploit environmental resources to generate work: They…

Statistical Mechanics · Physics 2020-09-02 Alexandra M. Jurgens , James P. Crutchfield

The problem of Maxwell's demon in granular gas is revisited in the case of a mixture of two particle species. The phase space is found to be 2d. Existence of cyclic orbits, with periodic segregation, is demonstrated by investigating the…

Fluid Dynamics · Physics 2011-11-24 P. Evesque

In this note, a brief review of the consistent state approach to systems containing closed timelike curves or similar devices is given, and applied to the well known thermodynamic problem of Maxwell's demon. The 'third party paradox' for…

General Relativity and Quantum Cosmology · Physics 2013-02-15 Michael Devin

Maxwell's Demon, 'a being whose faculties are so sharpened that he can follow every molecule in its course', has been the centre of much debate about its abilities to violate the second law of thermodynamics. Landauer's hypothesis, that the…

Logic in Computer Science · Computer Science 2015-11-06 Samson Abramsky , Dominic Horsman

In introductory biology, aging is typically explained as a result of mutations during the DNA replication process within cells. Upon abstraction, we recognize that cellular aging can be understood as the gradual decay in fidelity of…

Statistical Mechanics · Physics 2026-05-25 Maggie Williams , Emery Doucet , Sebastian Deffner

The study of feedback control inspired by Maxwell's demon is central to the understanding of the relationship between thermodynamics and information. In this paper, we establish fundamental lower limits on the work costs of system…

Quantum Physics · Physics 2026-03-10 Kaiyuan Ji , Gilad Gour , Mark M. Wilde

This is a review of the theory of quantum thermodynamic demons; these are quantum systems that look like they violate the laws of thermodynamics, in analogy with Maxwell's demon. It concentrates on autonomous demons that can be made using…

Mesoscale and Nanoscale Physics · Physics 2023-04-07 Robert S. Whitney

The Second Law of Thermodynamics states that the entropy of a closed system is non-decreasing. Discussing the Second Law in the quantum world poses new challenges and provides new opportunities, involving fundamental…

Quantum Physics · Physics 2016-12-01 A. V. Lebedev , D. Oehri , G. B. Lesovik , G. Blatter

In mathematical physical analyses of Szilard's engine and Maxwell's demon, a general assumption (explicit or implicit) is that one can neglect the energy needed for relocating the piston in Szilard's engine and for driving the trap door in…

General Physics · Physics 2012-06-26 Laszlo B. Kish , Claes G. Granqvist

In this paper we examine the Maxwell Demon problem from an information theoretic and computational point-of-view. In particular we calculate the required capacity of a communication channel that transports information to and from the Demon.…

Classical Physics · Physics 2007-05-23 Roger D. Jones , Sven G. Redsun , Roger E. Frye

We propose a physically realizable Maxwell's demon device using a spin valve interacting unitarily for a short time with electrons placed on a tape of quantum dots, which is thermodynamically equivalent to the device introduced by Mandal…

Statistical Mechanics · Physics 2014-12-03 Philipp Strasberg , Gernot Schaller , Tobias Brandes , Christopher Jarzynski

Nanomachines are often interpreted as autonomous Maxwell's demons or information engines. This interpretation is appealing from a conceptual viewpoint but sometimes lacks a rigorous and precise formulation. Moreover, it is unclear whether…

Mesoscale and Nanoscale Physics · Physics 2023-12-05 Juan Parrondo , Jorge Tabanera-Bravo , Federico Fedele , Natalia Ares

Thought experiments like Maxwell's Demon or the Feynman-Smoluchowski Ratchet can help in pursuing the microscopic origin of the Second Law of Thermodynamics. Here we present a more sophisticated physical system than a ratchet, consisting of…

Statistical Mechanics · Physics 2025-09-10 Simon Bienewald , Diego Marcel Fieguth , James R. Anglin

Quantum discord was proposed as an information theoretic measure of the ``quantumness'' of correlations. I show that discord determines the difference between the efficiency of quantum and classical Maxwell's demons -- that is, entities…

Quantum Physics · Physics 2009-11-10 Wojciech Hubert Zurek

We review of the interface between (theoretical) physics and information for non-experts. The origin of information as related to the notion of entropy is described, first in the context of thermodynamics then in the context of statistical…

Classical Physics · Physics 2007-12-18 F. Alexander Bais , J. Doyne Farmer

We identify that quantum coherence is a valuable resource in the quantum heat engine, which is designed in a quantum thermodynamic cycle assisted by a quantum Maxwell's demon. This demon is in a superposed state. The quantum work and heat…

Quantum Physics · Physics 2025-09-09 Yun-Hao Shi , Hai-Long Shi , Xiao-Hui Wang , Ming-Liang Hu , Si-Yuan Liu , Wen-Li Yang , Heng Fan