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Updated: Sep 11, 2025
05:20
Characterization of Thermal Transport in One-dimensional Solid Materials
Published on: January 26, 2014
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Thermodynamic Uncertainty Relations for Coherent Transport.
Kay Brandner1,2, Keiji Saito3
1University of Nottingham, School of Physics and Astronomy, Nottingham NG7 2RD, United Kingdom.
Physical Review Letters
|August 12, 2025
Summary
We established a universal thermodynamic uncertainty relation for fermionic coherent transport, linking entropy production to particle current. This finding has implications for the efficiency of quantum thermoelectric devices.
Area of Science:
- Thermodynamics
- Quantum Transport
- Statistical Mechanics
Background:
- Understanding entropy production is crucial in non-equilibrium thermodynamics.
- Fermionic systems exhibit unique quantum transport phenomena.
Purpose of the Study:
- To derive a universal thermodynamic uncertainty relation for fermionic coherent transport.
- To explore trade-off relations for quantum thermoelectric devices.
Main Methods:
- Derivation of a universal bound for entropy production.
- Analysis of particle current mean and fluctuations.
- Application to quantum dot models.
Main Results:
- A universal thermodynamic uncertainty relation for fermionic coherent transport is derived.
- The bound applies to various geometries and biases without magnetic fields.
- Trade-off relations for thermoelectric engines and refrigerators are established.
Conclusions:
- The derived uncertainty relation provides fundamental insights into quantum transport.
- Ideal efficiency in quantum thermoelectric devices is limited by power or its fluctuations.
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