Quantum, cyclic and particle-exchange heat engines

Abstract

Differences between the thermodynamic behavior of the three-level amplifier (a quantum heat engine based on a thermally pumped laser) and the classical Carnot cycle are usually attributed to the essentially quantum or discrete nature of the former. Here we provide examples of a number of classical and semiclassical heat engines, such as thermionic, thermoelectric and photovoltaic devices, which all utilize the same thermodynamic mechanism for achieving reversibility as the three-level amplifier, namely isentropic (but non-isothermal) particle transfer between hot and cold reservoirs. This mechanism is distinct from the isothermal heat transfer required to achieve reversibility in cyclic engines such as the Carnot, Otto or Brayton cycles. We point out that some of the qualitative differences previously uncovered between the three-level amplifier and the Carnot cycle may be attributed to the fact that they are not the same 'type' of heat engine, rather than to the quantum nature of the three-level amplifier per se.

arXiv comment9 pages. Proceedings of 'Frontiers of Quantum and Mesoscopic Thermodynamics', Prague 2004

References in corpus (6)

• Reversible thermoelectric nanomaterials
• Reversible quantum Brownian heat engines for electrons
• Performance of discrete heat engines and heat pumps in finite time
• A quantum-mechanical Maxwell's demon
• Extraction of work from a single thermal bath in the quantum regime
• Optimizing the performance of thermionic devices using energy filtering

Cited by in corpus (26)

• A quantum-dot heat engine operating close to the thermodynamic efficiency limits
• Quantum thermodynamic devices: from theoretical proposals to experimental reality
• Entanglement enhances cooling in microscopic quantum fridges
• Virtual qubits, virtual temperatures, and the foundations of thermodynamics
• Colloquium: Quantum heat transport in condensed matter systems
• Thermodynamics of Micro- and Nano-Systems Driven by Periodic Temperature Variations
• Work extremum principle: Structure and function of quantum heat engines
• Universal Coherence-Induced Power Losses of Quantum Heat Engines in Linear Response
• The smallest refrigerators can reach maximal efficiency
• Multi-terminal Thermoelectric Transport in a Magnetic Field: Bounds on Onsager Coefficients and Efficiency
• Optimal operation of a three-level quantum heat engine and universal nature of efficiency
• Squeezing as the source of inefficiency in the quantum Otto cycle
• Re-examining the self-contained quantum refrigerator in the strong-coupling regime
• Unified trade-off optimization of a three-level quantum refrigerator
• Stochastic Thermodynamic Cycles of a Mesoscopic Thermoelectric Engine
• Three-level laser heat engine at optimal performance with ecological function
• Hot Carrier Extraction Using Energy Selective Contacts and Its Impact on the Limiting Efficiency of a Hot Carrier Solar Cell
• Non-Hermitian heat engine with all-quantum-adiabatic-process cycle
• Multi-level quantum Diesel engine of non-interacting fermions in a one-dimensional box
• Quantum Brayton Engine of Non-Interacting Fermions in a One-Dimensional Box
• Thermodynamics of Cyclic Quantum Amplifiers
• Optoelectronic Reciprocity in Hot Carrier Solar Cells with Ideal Energy Selective Contacts
• Nanocoolers
• A Strongly Correlated Quantum-Dot Heat Engine with Optimal Performance: An Non-equilibrium Green's function Approach
• Thermodynamics of enhanced heat transfer: a model study
• Angle-dependent resonant tunneling and thermoelectric energy management in a hybrid 1D-2D-1D semiconductor nanostructure