Quantum Light Engine Links Atom-Photon Thermodynamics to Classical Physics

Light Reveals the Hidden Quantum Motion Inside an Exotic Crystal

Optical measurements can reveal the hidden collective motion and quantum dynamics of electrons inside a Wigner crystal. In a Wigner crystal, electrons behave in an unusual way. Rather than moving independently, strongly interacting electrons confined to a two-dimensional plane can arrange themselves into a repeating lattice similar to the atoms in an ordinary crystal. Researchers [...]

Quantum light engine links atom-photon thermodynamics to classical physics

What is heat, and what is useful work if a machine consists only of an atom and light particles? In modern quantum technologies, this kind of question connects thermodynamics with quantum physics. Researchers at the University of Basel, Switzerland, have developed a theoretical approach that can reconcile both theories.

Quantum Light Engines Could Power a New Generation of Microscopic Machines

What happens when a heat engine is reduced to a single atom interacting with particles of light? The question may sound like science fiction, but it describes a real class of systems now being studied at the frontier of quantum technology. Researchers at the University of Basel in Switzerland have developed a theoretical framework that […]

Quantum coherence links quantum engines with classical thermodynamics

A tiny quantum machine can release light that is not simply wasted heat; some of that energy may still be useful for doing work. University of Basel physicists found that separating orderly, coherent light from noisy fluctuations allows quantum thermodynamics to match its simpler semiclassical limit. The distinction could help physicists detect quantum behavior more accurately and use reduced light fluctuations for highly precise measurements. A…