Experimental study of quantum thermodynamics using optical vortices

Abstract

Non-equilibrium thermodynamics and quantum information theory are interrelated research fields witnessing an increasing theoretical and experimental interest. This is mainly due to the broadness of these theories, which found applications in many different fields of science, ranging from biology to the foundations of physics. Here, by employing the orbital angular momentum of light, we propose a new platform for studying non-equilibrium properties of high dimensional quantum systems. Specifically, we use Laguerre-Gaussian beams to emulate the energy eigenstates of a two-dimension quantum harmonic oscillator having angular momentum. These light beams are subjected to a process realized by a spatial light modulator and the corresponding work distribution is experimentally reconstructed employing a two-point measurement scheme. The Jarzynski fluctuation relation is then verified. We also suggest the realization of Maxwell's demon with this platform.

Work statistics for sudden quenches in interacting quantum many-body systems

“…Fluctuation relations [20][21][22][23] are simple equalities that establish relations between nonequilibrium quantities, such as work statistics, with quantities from equilibrium, such as the free energy. These relations were verified both in the classical [24][25][26] and quantum domains [27][28][29][30][31] by defining quantum work via the two projective energy measurement scheme [32][33][34][35][36][37]. The two projective energy measurement scheme provides a clear operational definition of work for isolated systems, and requires two energy measurements, one at the beginning and the other at the end of the process.…”

Measurement-based quantum heat engine in a multilevel system

“…Thus there is a natural need to understand which, if any, quantum effects may enhance thermodynamic processes. This emerging subject, known as quantum thermodynamics, has received attention from different fields, such as quantum information [1][2][3][4][5][6], quantum optics [7][8][9][10][11] and resource theory [12,13].…”

Non-equilibrium thermodynamics of quantum processes assisted by transitionless quantum driving: the role of initial state preparation

“…As a burgeoning field, quantum thermodynamics holds the promises to impact significantly on quantum technologies [11,12] by providing the energetic footprint of processing information quantum mechanically. Remarkably, some pioneer experimental tests have already been reported [13][14][15][16][17][18]. When used to characterize the performance of a thermal machine [19][20][21][22] quantum thermodynamics reveals that a quantum thermo-engine has the potential to even surpass the theoretic threshold of Carnot bound with the help of quantum resources [23][24][25].…”