相关论文: What limits photosynthesis? Identifying the thermo…
Photoluminescence (PL) is a fundamental light-matter interaction in which absorbed photons are re-emitted, playing a key role in science and engineering. It is commonly modeled by introducing a non-zero chemical potential into Planck's law…
The dynamics of microbial communities is incredibly complex, determined by competition for metabolic substrates and cross-feeding of byproducts. Species in the community grow by harvesting energy from chemical reactions that transform…
Ever science the invention of solar cells, thermodynamics has been used to assess their performance limits, guiding advances in materials science and photovoltaic technology to reduce the gap between the practical efficiencies and the…
We derive the thermodynamic limits of harvesting power from the outgoing thermal radiation from the ambient to the cold outer space. The derivations are based on a duality relation between thermal engines that harvest solar radiation and…
The deep connection between thermodynamics, computation, and information is now well established both theoretically and experimentally. Here, we extend these ideas to show that thermodynamics also places fundamental constraints on…
Carbon dioxide is a chemically active molecule that plays a vital role in Earth's ecosphere. CO$_2$ affects the acidity of seawater and has multiple negative effects on marine organisms. It is also a fundamental component of the…
The potential of industrial applications for microalgae has motivated their recent fast development. Their growth dynamics depends on different factors that must be optimized. Since they get their energy from photosynthesis, light is a key…
Water vapour is highly subsaturated in much of the Earth's atmosphere. This has important consequences for water vapour feedback, and also for general phenomena such as the runaway greenhouse. In this chapter, we discuss the processes that…
Light pollution can be rigorously described in terms of the volume concentration of anthropogenic photons (light quanta) in the terrestrial atmosphere. This formulation, consistent with the basic physics of the emission, scattering and…
Photoionization by high-energy photons creates nonthermal electrons with a broad range of energies that heat and chemically transform the atmospheres of planets. The specifics of the interactions are notably different when the gas is atomic…
Earth and other rocky objects in the inner Solar System are depleted in carbon compared to objects in the outer Solar System, the Sun, or the ISM. It is believed that this is a result of the selective removal of refractory carbon from…
Solar-thermal evaporation, a traditional steam generation method for solar desalination, has received numerous attentions in recent years due to the significant increase in efficiency by adopting interfacial evaporation. While most of the…
Understanding the thermodynamics of the duplication process is a fundamental step towards a comprehensive physical theory of biological systems. However, the immense complexity of real cells obscures the fundamental tensions between energy…
Water is abundantly present in the Universe. It is the main component of interstellar ice mantles and a key ingredient for life. Water in space is mainly formed through surface reactions. Three formation routes have been proposed in the…
Our planet is experiencing an accelerated process of change associated to a variety of anthropogenic phenomena. The future of this transformation is uncertain, but there is general agreement about its negative unfolding that might threaten…
A huge amount of thermal energy is available close to material surfaces in radiative and non-radiative states, which can be useful for matter characterization or for energy devices. One way to harness this near-field energy is to scatter it…
Solar still is an eco-friendly and convenient desalination system that can provide fresh water for remote areas and emergencies. The energy efficiency and productivity of conventional solar still are unsatisfying and need improvement, which…
Earth remains the only known example of a planet with technology, and future projections of Earth's trajectory provide a basis and motivation for approaching the search for extraterrestrial technospheres. Conventional approaches toward…
Energy storage becomes crucial for energy systems with an increasing share of renewable energy sources. Artificial photosynthesis, in particular photovoltaic water splitting, provides both sustainable energy generation and energy storage in…
Using a recently developed formalism, we present an in-depth analysis of how the thermodynamics of the climate system varies with CO2 concentration by performing experiments with a simplified yet Earth-like climate model. We find that, in…