Tiny quantum engines reveal useful energy hiding in “waste heat”
A tiny machine made from just an atom and particles of light may sound impossibly simple, but it raises a surprisingly difficult question: what counts as heat, and what energy can still do useful work?
A tiny machine made from just an atom and particles of light may sound impossibly simple, but it raises a surprisingly difficult question: what counts as heat, and what energy can still do useful work?
The short version
- University of Basel researchers have developed a theoretical framework that brings quantum physics and thermodynamics into better agreement for these microscopic “light engines.”.
- What counts as heat, and what qualifies as useful work when a machine is made from only an atom and particles of light?
- In emerging quantum technologies, questions like this bring together two branches of physics that were developed for very different purposes.
What happened
Researchers at the University of Basel in Switzerland have now introduced a theoretical framework designed to make thermodynamics and quantum physics work consistently in the same setting. Thermodynamics emerged in the 19th century largely to explain how large machines such as steam engines convert and transfer energy.
Why it matters
Quantum physics, developed in the early 20th century, instead focuses on atoms and subatomic particles.
Summary by Nerd News Network. Read the full article at ScienceDaily — Top Science via the links above and below.