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Fluctuation theorems are fundamental extensions of the second law of thermodynamics for small systems. Their general validity arbitrarily far from equilibrium makes them invaluable in nonequilibrium physics. So far, experimental studies of…
In the scientific and engineering literature, the second law of thermodynamics is expressed in terms of the behavior of entropy in reversible and irreversible processes. According to the prevailing statistical mechanics interpretation the…
Thermodynamic transport phenomena in the system consisting of many hard-disks confined in a circular tube with a temperature difference are discussed. Here, temperatures on parts of the walls of the tube are imposed by stochastic boundary…
The limits of the Second Law of Thermodynamics, which reigns undisputed in the macroscopic world, are investigated at the mesoscopic level, corresponding to spatial dimensions of a few microns. An extremely simple isolated system, modeled…
In this paper, we will critically discuss recent theoretical and experimental developments on the transport of one dimensional quantum systems. In particular, we will focus on open issues and controversial results related to the finite…
By assuming that a particle of energy hbar.omega is actually a dissipative system maintained in a nonequilibrium steady state by a constant throughput of energy (heat flow), the exact Schroedinger equation is derived, both for conservative…
The Fluctuation Theorem describes the probability ratio of observing trajectories that satisfy or violate the second law of thermodynamics. It has been proved in a number of different ways for thermostatted deterministic nonequilibrium…
If the second law of thermodynamics forbids a transition from one state to another, then it is still possible to make the transition happen by using a sufficient amount of work. But if we do not have access to this amount of work, can the…
The stranglehold of low temperatures on fascinating quantum phenomena in one-dimensional quantum magnets has been challenged recently by the discovery of anomalous spin transport at high temperatures. Whereas both regimes have been…
The understanding of the underlying dynamical mechanisms which determine the macroscopic laws of heat conduction is a long standing task of non-equilibrium statistical mechanics. A better understanding of the mechanism of heat conduction…
We study the combined effect of thermal and quantum fluctuations in a zero dimensional superconductor. By using path integral techniques, we obtain novel expressions for the partition function and the superconducting order parameter which…
Large entropy fluctuations in a nonequilibrium steady state of classical mechanics were studied in extensive numerical experiments on a simple 2-freedom model with the so-called Gauss time-reversible thermostat. The local fluctuations (on a…
Using the theory of the high temperature superconductivity based on the idea of the fermion condensation quantum phase transition (FCQPT), we show that neither the d-wave pairing symmetry, nor the pseudogap phenomenon, nor the presence of…
Fluctuation theorems impose constraints on the probability of observing negative entropy production in small systems driven out of equilibrium. The range of validity of fluctuation theorems has been extensively tested for transitions…
We define a `hyperconductor' to be a material whose electrical and thermal DC conductivities are infinite at zero temperature and finite at any non-zero temperature. The low-temperature behavior of a hyperconductor is controlled by a…
The second law of thermodynamics constitutes a fundamental principle of physics, precluding the existence of perpetual motion machines and providing a natural definition of the arrow of time. Its scope extends across virtually all areas of…
Almost a century ago, Johnson and Nyquist presented evidence of fluctuating electrical current and the governing fluctuation dissipation theorem (FDT). Whether, likewise, temperature T can fluctuate is a controversial topic and has led to…
We carefully examine the thermodynamic consequences of the repeated partial projection model for coupling a quantum system to an arbitrary series of environments under feedback control. This paper provides observational definitions of heat…
The approach to a substantiation of thermodynamics is offered. A conservative system of interacting elements, which is not in equilibrium, is used as a model. This system is then split into small subsystems that are accepted as being in…
We study the dynamics of a mobile impurity in a quantum fluid at zero temperature. Two related settings are considered. In the first setting the impurity is injected in the fluid with some initial velocity ${\mathbf v}_0$, and we are…