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Beyond heat baths: Generalized resource theories for small-scale thermodynamics
Nicole Yunger Halpern1,2, Joseph M Renes3
1Institute for Quantum Information and Matter, Caltech, Pasadena, California 91125, USA.
Physical Review. E
|March 18, 2016
Summary
This study generalizes thermodynamics to small scales, enabling the modeling of diverse physical exchanges beyond heat. This extends resource theories for broader applications in statistical mechanics and real-world systems.
Area of Science:
- Physics
- Statistical Mechanics
- Quantum Thermodynamics
Background:
- Thermodynamics has been extended to small scales using resource theories for heat exchange.
- Real physical systems involve diverse exchanges like heat, particles, and angular momentum.
Purpose of the Study:
- Generalize thermodynamic resource theories beyond heat and Helmholtz free energy.
- Model systems exchanging diverse quantities and utilizing baths beyond heat baths.
- Develop a framework applicable to realistic systems using one-shot statistical mechanics.
Main Methods:
- Generalized thermodynamic resource theories to include particle and other observable exchanges.
- Introduced "grand-potential" theories for modeling simultaneous heat and particle movement.
- Derived grand-canonical states from conservation laws and resource-theory principles.
Main Results:
- Demonstrated that states form a quasiorder characterized by free operations, d-majorization, and hypothesis-testing entropy.
- Calculated distillable work and bounded the work cost of creating states.
- Showed work quantities converge to the grand potential in the thermodynamic limit.
Conclusions:
- Extended thermodynamic resource theories to model diverse realistic systems beyond heat baths.
- Opened avenues for applying one-shot statistical mechanics to systems like electrochemical batteries.
- Bridged theoretical frameworks with potential experimental applications in energy storage.
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