Path integral approach to heat in quantum thermodynamics

Area of Science:

• Quantum thermodynamics
• Statistical mechanics
• Condensed matter physics

Background:

• The Caldeira-Leggett model describes quantum Brownian motion.
• Understanding heat in quantum systems remains a challenge.
• Classical heat statistics differ from quantum mechanical behavior.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop a quantum heat functional for quantum Brownian motion.
• To investigate the statistical properties of quantum heat.
• To explore the relationship between quantum and classical heat.

Main Methods:

• Utilizing the path integral approach.
• Defining a quantum heat functional for Feynman path pairs.
• Analyzing microscopic reversibility via forward and time-reversed probabilities.
• Proving quantum-classical correspondence analytically.

Main Results:

• A novel quantum heat functional is introduced.
• Microscopic reversibility of quantum heat is demonstrated.
• Analytical proof of quantum-classical correspondence for heat statistics is established.

Conclusions:

• The quantum heat functional provides new insights into quantum heat.
• The study clarifies the distinctions between classical and quantum heat.
• This work bridges quantum mechanics and thermodynamics for dissipative systems.