Related papers: Minimal work principle: proof and counterexamples
Optimal (reversible) processes in thermodynamics can be modelled as step-by-step processes, where the system is successively thermalized with respect to different Hamiltonians by an external thermal bath. However, in practice interactions…
The objective of this work is to show that adiabatic processes can be very similar to isothermal ones. First, we show that the criteria for the compatibility of linear-response theory with the Second Law of Thermodynamics for thermally…
Progress in miniaturized technology allows us to control physical systems at nanoscale with remarkable precision. Experimental advancements have sparked interest in control problems in stochastic thermodynamics, typically concerning a…
For processes during which a macroscopic system exchanges no heat with its surroundings, the second law of thermodynamics places two lower bounds on the amount of work performed on the system: a weak bound, expressed in terms of a…
Two approaches are outlined to characterize the fluctuation behavior of work applied to a system by a slow change of a parameter. One approach uses the adiabatic theorems of quantum and classical mechanics, the other one is based on the…
We reassess the concept of transition at minimum work in classical stochastic finite-time thermodynamics, when the system dynamics is modelled by a diffusion process. We show that a well-posed formulation of the optimal control problem…
The adiabatic approximation exhibits wide applicability in quantum mechanics, providing a simple approach for nontransitional dynamics in quantum systems governed by slowly varying time-dependent Hamiltonians. However, the standard…
For macroscopic systems, the second law of thermodynamics establishes an inequality between the amount of work performed on a system in contact with a thermal reservoir, and the change in its free energy. For microscopic systems, this…
In this paper, decoherence is studied for quantum systems undergoing adiabatic processes, which are coupled to huge quantum environments. It is shown that decoherence can happen with respect to a preferred basis given by transient…
Obtaining adiabatic processes that connect equilibrium states in a given time represents a challenge for mesoscopic systems. In this paper, we explicitly show how to build these finite-time adiabatic processes for an overdamped Brownian…
The adiabatic theorem provides the basis for the adiabatic model of quantum computation. Recently the conditions required for the adiabatic theorem to hold have become a subject of some controversy. Here we show that the reported violations…
Quantum dynamics controlled by a time-dependent coupling constant are studied. It is proven that an energy eigenstate expectation value of work done by the system in a quench process cannot exceed the work in the corresponding quasi-static…
The quantum analog of Carnot cycles in few-particle systems consists of two quantum adiabatic steps and two isothermal steps. This construction is formally justified by use of a minimum work principle. It is then shown, without relying on…
The second law of thermodynamics states that entropy production in macroscopic systems is non-negative, reaching zero only at thermodynamic equilibrium. As a corollary, this implies that the state trajectory of macroscopic systems is…
Considering a general microscopic model for a quantum measuring apparatus comprising a quantum probe coupled to a thermal bath, we analyze the energetic resources necessary for the realization of a quantum measurement, which includes the…
Work fluctuation and total entropy production play crucial roles in small thermodynamic systems subject to large thermal fluctuations. We investigate a trade-off relation between them in a nonequilibrium situation in which a system starts…
A recently developed approach to the thermodynamics of open quantum systems, on the basis of the principle of minimal dissipation, is applied to the spin-boson model. Employing a numerically exact quantum dynamical treatment based on the…
Isothermal processes of a finitely extended, driven quantum system in contact with an infinite heat bath are studied from the point of view of quantum statistical mechanics. Notions like heat flux, work and entropy are defined for…
We consider continuously monitored quantum systems and introduce definitions of work and heat along individual quantum trajectories that are valid for coherent superpositions of energy eigenstates. We use these quantities to extend the…
Quantum work fluctuation theorem (FT) commonly requires the system initially prepared in an equilibrium state. Whether there exists universal exact quantum work FT for initial state beyond equilibrium needs further discussions. Here, I…