Notes on heat engines and negative temperatures

Abstract

We show that a Carnot cycle operating between a positive canonical-temperature bath and a negative canonical-temperature bath has efficiency equal to unity. It follows that a negative canonical-temperature cannot be identified with an absolute temperature. We illustrate this with a spin in a varying magnetic field.

2 pages, 1 figure. This self-standing material appeared in a early version of arXiv:1411.2425

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