Related papers: Single-atom heat machines enabled by energy quanti…
We demonstrate how a quantum Otto engine (QOE) can be implemented using a single ion and an always-on thermal environment. The internal degree of freedom of the ion is chosen as the working fluid, while the motional degree of freedom can be…
Heat engines near the adiabatic limit typically assume a working medium at thermal equilibrium. However, quantum many-body systems often showcase conservation laws that hinder thermalization, leading to prethermalization in exotic…
We investigate how quantum signatures can emerge in a single atom heat engine consisting of an atom confined in a tapered trap and subject to hot and cold thermal reservoirs. A similar system was realized experimentally in Ref.[1]. We model…
We present a theoretical and numerical analysis of a quantum system that is capable of functioning as a heat engine. This system could be realized experimentally using cold bosonic atoms confined to a double well potential that is created…
The characterization and control of quantum effects in the performance of thermodynamic tasks may open new avenues for small thermal machines working in the nanoscale. We study the impact of coherence in the energy basis in the operation of…
Quantum heat engines form an active field of research due to their potential applications. There are several phenomena that are unique to the quantum regime, some of which are known to give these engines an edge over their classical…
The optimization of finite-time thermodynamic heat engines was intensively explored recently, yet limited to few cycles, e.g. finite-time Carnot-like cycle. In this paper, we supplement a new type of finite-time engine with quantum Otto…
To optimize the performance of a heat engine in finite-time cycle, it is important to understand the finite-time effect of thermodynamic processes. Previously, we have shown that extra work is needed to complete a quantum adiabatic process…
The performances of quantum thermometry in thermal equilibrium together with the output power of certain class of quantum engines share a common characteristic: both are determined by the heat capacity of the probe or working medium. After…
Developments in the thermodynamics of small quantum systems envisage non-classical thermal machines. In this scenario, energy fluctuations play a relevant role in the description of irreversibility. We experimentally implement a quantum…
The aim of this book chapter is to indicate how quantum phenomena are affecting the operation of microscopic thermal machines, such as engines and refrigerators. As converting heat to work is one of the fundamental concerns in…
Quantum many-body systems present substantial technical challenges from both analytical and numerical perspectives. Despite these difficulties, some progress has been made, including studies of interacting atomic gases and interacting…
After a brief historical perspective, we introduce the key notions of work and heat for quantum systems, to then apply them to quantum engines operating on quantum Otto and Carnot cycles. The irreversible and dissipative character of the…
In this work, we analyze an Otto-type cycle operating with a working substance composed of a quantum harmonic oscillator (QHO). Unlike other studies in which the work extraction is done by varying the frequency of the QHO and letting it…
We study quantum Otto thermal machines with a two-spin working system coupled by anisotropic interaction. Depending on the choice of different parameters, the quantum Otto cycle can function as different thermal machines, including a heat…
Relativistic quantum systems exhibit unique features not present at lower energies, such as the existence of both particles and antiparticles, and restrictions placed on the system dynamics due to the light cone. In order to understand what…
From an entropy-based formulation of the first law of thermodynamics in the quantum regime, we investigate the performance of Otto-like and Carnot-like engines for a single-qubit working medium. Within this framework, the first law includes…
The heat engine, a machine that extracts useful work from thermal sources, is one of the basic theoretical constructs and fundamental applications of classical thermodynamics. The classical description of a heat engine does not include…
We consider a thermodynamic machine in which the working fluid is a quantized harmonic oscillator that is controlled on timescales that are much faster than the oscillator period. We find that operation in this `fast' regime allows access…
We present a quantum Otto engine model consisting of two isochoric and two adiabatic strokes, where the adiabatic expansion or compression is realized by adiabatically changing the shape of the potential. Here we show that such an adiabatic…