Squeezed Thermal Reservoirs as a Resource for a Nanomechanical Engine beyond the Carnot Limit

Open access
Date
2017Type
- Journal Article
Citations
Cited 136 times in
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Cited 145 times in
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Abstract
The efficient conversion of thermal energy to mechanical work by a heat engine is an ongoing technological challenge. Since the pioneering work of Carnot, it has been known that the efficiency of heat engines is bounded by a fundamental upper limit—the Carnot limit. Theoretical studies suggest that heat engines may be operated beyond the Carnot limit by exploiting stationary, nonequilibrium reservoirs that are characterized by a temperature as well as further parameters. In a proof-of-principle experiment, we demonstrate that the efficiency of a nanobeam heat engine coupled to squeezed thermal noise is not bounded by the standard Carnot limit. Remarkably, we also show that it is possible to design a cyclic process that allows for extraction of mechanical work from a single squeezed thermal reservoir. Our results demonstrate a qualitatively new regime of nonequilibrium thermodynamics at small scales and provide a new perspective on the design of efficient, highly miniaturized engines. Show more
Permanent link
https://doi.org/10.3929/ethz-b-000187287Publication status
publishedExternal links
Journal / series
Physical Review XVolume
Pages / Article No.
Publisher
American Physical SocietyOrganisational unit
03636 - Imamoglu, Atac / Imamoglu, Atac
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Citations
Cited 136 times in
Web of Science
Cited 145 times in
Scopus
ETH Bibliography
yes
Altmetrics