Related papers: Quantifying nonequlibrium thermodynamic operations…
We analyze a mesoscopic conductor autonomously performing a thermodynamically useful task, such as cooling or producing electrical power, in a part of the system -- the working substance -- by exploiting another terminal or set of terminals…
Quantum-dot systems serve as nanoscale heat engines exploiting thermal fluctuations to perform a useful task. Here, we investigate a multi-terminal triple-dot system, operating as a refrigerator that extracts heat from a cold electronic…
The quest for good thermoelectric materials and/or high-efficiency thermoelectric devices is of primary importance from theoretical and practical points of view. Low-dimensional structures with quantum dots or molecules are promising…
We consider the nonlinear scattering theory for three-terminal thermoelectric devices, used for power generation or refrigeration. Such systems are quantum phase-coherent versions of a thermocouple, and the theory applies to systems in…
Active matter generates order or patterns through nonequilibrium dynamics. An open research challenge is to determine how efficiently a nonequilibrium self-organising system can convert consumed energy into macroscopic order. We study an…
We provide a framework for optimizing energy conversion processes in coherent quantum conductors fed by nonthermal resources. Such nonthermal resources, which cannot be characterized by temperatures or electrochemical potentials, occur in…
We investigate a mesoscopic refrigerator based on chiral quantum Hall edge channels. We discuss a three-terminal cooling device in which charge transport occurs between a pair of voltage-biased terminals only. The third terminal, which is…
Including phonon-assisted inelastic process in thermoelectric devices is able to enhance the performance of nonequilibrium work extraction. In this work, we demonstrate that inelastic phonon-thermoelectric devices have a fertile…
Quantifying energy flows at nanometer scales promises to guide future research in a variety of disciplines, from microscopic control and manipulation, to autonomously operating molecular machines. A general understanding of the…
Improvement of thermoelectric systems in terms of performance and range of applications relies on progress in materials science and optimization of device operation. In this chapter, we focuse on optimization by taking into account the…
Various quantum systems are considered as the working substance for the analysis of quantum heat cycles and quantum refrigerators. The ongoing technological challenge is how efficiently can a heat engine convert thermal energy to mechanical…
We propose a scheme for a quantum thermal machine made by atoms interacting with a single non-equilibrium electromagnetic field. The field is produced by a simple configuration of macroscopic objects held at thermal equilibrium at different…
Cavity optomechanical systems are a paradigmatic setting for the conversion of electromagnetic energy into mechanical work. Experiments with atoms coupled to cavity modes are realized in nonequilibrium conditions, described by…
The concept of thermal machines has evolved from the canonical steam engine to the recently proposed nanoscopic quantum systems as working fluids. The latter obey quantum open system dynamics and frequently operate in non-equilibrium…
Nanotechnology has not only provided us the possibility of developing quantum machines but also noncanonical power sources able to drive them. Here we focus on studying the performance of quantum machines driven by arbitrary combinations of…
Non-equilibrium thermodynamics can provide strong advantages when compared to more standard equilibrium situations. Here, we present a general framework to study its application to concrete problems, which is valid also beyond the…
We study temperature fluctuations in mesoscopic $N$-body systems undergoing non-equilibrium processes from the perspective of stochastic thermodynamics. By introducing a stochastic differential equation, we describe the evolution of the…
We study linear response and nonequilibrium steady-state thermoelectric transport through a single-level quantum dot tunnel coupled to two reservoirs held at different temperatures as well as chemical potentials. A fermion occupying the dot…
The energy efficiency and power of a quantum thermoelectric system with multiple electric currents and only one heat currents are studied. The system is connected to the hot heat bath with one terminal but the cold bath with multiple…
Quantum thermodynamics allows for the interconversion of quantum coherence and mechanical work. Quantum coherence is thus a potential physical resource for quantum machines. However, formulating a general nonequilibrium thermodynamics of…