Jove
Visualize
Contact Us
JoVE
x logofacebook logolinkedin logoyoutube logo
ABOUT JoVE
OverviewLeadershipBlogJoVE Help Center
AUTHORS
Publishing ProcessEditorial BoardScope & PoliciesPeer ReviewFAQSubmit
LIBRARIANS
TestimonialsSubscriptionsAccessResourcesLibrary Advisory BoardFAQ
RESEARCH
JoVE JournalMethods CollectionsJoVE Encyclopedia of ExperimentsArchive
EDUCATION
JoVE CoreJoVE BusinessJoVE Science EducationJoVE Lab ManualFaculty Resource CenterFaculty Site
Terms & Conditions of Use
Privacy Policy
Policies

Related Concept Videos

Heat Engines01:10

Heat Engines

3.0K
A heat engine is a device used to extract heat from a source and then convert it into mechanical work used for various applications. For example, a steam engine on an old-style train can produce the work needed for driving the train.
Whenever we consider heat engines (and associated devices such as refrigerators and heat pumps), we do not use the standard sign convention for heat and work. For convenience, we assume that the symbols Qh, Qc, and W represent only the amounts of heat transferred...
3.0K
The Carnot Cycle01:30

The Carnot Cycle

3.1K
Converting work to heat is an irreversible process, and the purpose of a heat engine is to reverse the effect partially. Heat engines aim to increase the efficiency of the reversal, that is, maximize the work retrieved from heat. If the efficiency of a heat engine were 100%, it would imply reversing the process completely without introducing any other effect. Thus, it would violate the second law of thermodynamics.
What could be the theoretical limit to the efficiency of a heat engine? The...
3.1K
The Carnot Cycle and the Second Law of Thermodynamics01:20

The Carnot Cycle and the Second Law of Thermodynamics

2.8K
The Carnot engine works between two heat reservoirs of fixed temperatures. The Carnot cycle begs the following question: Is it possible to devise a heat engine that is more efficient than a Carnot engine between two fixed temperatures? The answer lies in designing a Carnot refrigerator.
Since the individual steps in a Carnot cycle can be reversed, the entire cycle is, thus, reversible. If a Carnot cycle is reversed, it becomes a Carnot refrigerator. It extracts heat Qc from a cold reservoir at...
2.8K
Path Between Thermodynamics States01:21

Path Between Thermodynamics States

3.3K
Consider the two thermodynamic processes involving an ideal gas that are represented by paths AC and ABC in Figure 1:
3.3K
Entropy01:18

Entropy

2.7K
The first law of thermodynamics is quantitatively formulated via an equation relating the internal energy of a system, the heat exchanged by it, and the work done on it. A quantitative formulation of the second law of thermodynamics leads to defining a state function, the entropy.
When an ideal gas expands isothermally, the disorder in the gas increases. From the molecular perspective, the gas molecules have more volume to move around in.
Consider an infinitesimal step in the expansion, which...
2.7K
Statements of the Second Law of Thermodynamics01:15

Statements of the Second Law of Thermodynamics

4.1K
The second law of thermodynamics can be stated in several different ways, and all of them can be shown to imply the others. The Clausius’ statement of the second law of thermodynamics is based on the irreversibility of spontaneous heat flow. It states that heat will not flow from the colder body to the hotter body unless some other process is involved. Additionally, as per the Kelvin’s statement, it is impossible to convert the heat from a single source into work without any other...
4.1K

You might also read

Related Articles

Articles linked to this work by shared authors, journal, and citation graph.

Sort by
Same author

Enhancing the efficiency of quantum measurement-based engines with entangling measurements.

Physical review. E·2026
Same author

Coupling a single spin to the motion of a carbon nanotube.

Nature communications·2025
Same author

Exploring quantum ergodicity of unitary evolution through the Krylov approach.

Physical review. E·2025
Same author

Integrability-to-chaos transition through the Krylov approach for state evolution.

Physical review. E·2024
Same author

A Wigner Quasiprobability Distribution of Work.

Entropy (Basel, Switzerland)·2023
Same author

Classical approach to equilibrium of out-of-time ordered correlators in mixed systems.

Physical review. E·2023
Same journal

Erratum: Low-dimensional model for adaptive networks of spiking neurons [Phys. Rev. E 111, 014422 (2025)].

Physical review. E·2026
Same journal

Disentangling the effects of many-body forces on depletion interactions.

Physical review. E·2026
Same journal

Charge transport and mode transition in dual-energy electron beam diodes.

Physical review. E·2026
Same journal

Optimization of multisite reactions in complex compartmentalized media.

Physical review. E·2026
Same journal

Origin of geometric cohesion in nonconvex granular materials: Interplay between interdigitation and rotational constraints enhancing frictional stability.

Physical review. E·2026
Same journal

Interaction of walkers with a standing Faraday wave.

Physical review. E·2026
See all related articles

Related Experiment Video

Updated: Aug 24, 2025

A Rapid Method for Modeling a Variable Cycle Engine
04:58

A Rapid Method for Modeling a Variable Cycle Engine

Published on: August 13, 2019

7.6K

Heat engines with single-shot deterministic work extraction.

Federico Cerisola1,2,3, Facundo Sapienza1,4, Augusto J Roncaglia1,2

  • 1Universidad de Buenos Aires, Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales, Departamento de Física, Buenos Aires, Argentina.

Physical Review. E
|October 21, 2022
PubMed
Summary
This summary is machine-generated.

This study introduces nanoscale heat engines for deterministic work extraction. Efficiency is limited by fundamental irreversibility, but approaches Carnot

More Related Videos

Improving the Combustion Performance of a Hybrid Rocket Engine using a Novel Fuel Grain with a Nested Helical Structure
07:58

Improving the Combustion Performance of a Hybrid Rocket Engine using a Novel Fuel Grain with a Nested Helical Structure

Published on: January 18, 2021

6.0K
Biomass Conversion to Produce Hydrocarbon Liquid Fuel Via Hot-vapor Filtered Fast Pyrolysis and Catalytic Hydrotreating
11:28

Biomass Conversion to Produce Hydrocarbon Liquid Fuel Via Hot-vapor Filtered Fast Pyrolysis and Catalytic Hydrotreating

Published on: December 25, 2016

26.6K

Related Experiment Videos

Last Updated: Aug 24, 2025

A Rapid Method for Modeling a Variable Cycle Engine
04:58

A Rapid Method for Modeling a Variable Cycle Engine

Published on: August 13, 2019

7.6K
Improving the Combustion Performance of a Hybrid Rocket Engine using a Novel Fuel Grain with a Nested Helical Structure
07:58

Improving the Combustion Performance of a Hybrid Rocket Engine using a Novel Fuel Grain with a Nested Helical Structure

Published on: January 18, 2021

6.0K
Biomass Conversion to Produce Hydrocarbon Liquid Fuel Via Hot-vapor Filtered Fast Pyrolysis and Catalytic Hydrotreating
11:28

Biomass Conversion to Produce Hydrocarbon Liquid Fuel Via Hot-vapor Filtered Fast Pyrolysis and Catalytic Hydrotreating

Published on: December 25, 2016

26.6K

Area of Science:

  • Thermodynamics
  • Statistical Mechanics
  • Nanoscale Engineering

Background:

  • Classical thermodynamics governs macroscopic heat engines, but its application to the nanoscale is limited.
  • Understanding work extraction and efficiency at the single-shot and nanoscale requires new theoretical frameworks.
  • The Carnot efficiency represents the theoretical maximum for heat engine efficiency.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To introduce and analyze heat engines operating in the nanoscale regime.
  • To investigate the fundamental limits of deterministic work extraction from nanoscale systems.
  • To explore the relationship between efficiency, work fluctuations, and system correlations.

Main Methods:

  • Utilized the resource theory approach to thermodynamics.
  • Analyzed single-shot transformations and their associated irreversibility.
  • Investigated the impact of fluctuations in extracted work on engine efficiency.
  • Examined the role of correlations in multi-particle systems for approaching Carnot efficiency.

Main Results:

  • Demonstrated the extraction of finite deterministic work from nanoscale heat engines.
  • Showed that nanoscale engine efficiency is strictly less than Carnot efficiency due to fundamental irreversibility.
  • Identified a trade-off between work fluctuation size and engine efficiency.
  • Established that Carnot efficiency can be approached in the asymptotic limit for multi-particle systems with specific correlations.

Conclusions:

  • Nanoscale heat engines offer a pathway for deterministic work extraction, albeit with efficiencies below the Carnot limit.
  • Irreversibility in single-shot transformations fundamentally limits nanoscale engine performance.
  • Correlations in multi-particle systems are crucial for optimizing efficiency and approaching theoretical limits.