dorsal/arxiv
View SchemaQuantum Brownian motion and the Third Law of thermodynamics
| Authors | Peter Hänggi, Gert-Ludwig Ingold |
|---|---|
| Categories | |
| ArXiv ID | quant-ph/0601056 |
| URL | https://arxiv.org/abs/quant-ph/0601056 |
| Journal | Acta Phys. Pol. B 37, 1537-1550 (2006) |
Abstract
The quantum thermodynamic behavior of small systems is investigated in presence of finite quantum dissipation. We consider the archetype cases of a damped harmonic oscillator and a free quantum Brownian particle. A main finding is that quantum dissipation helps to ensure the validity of the Third Law. For the quantum oscillator, finite damping replaces the zero-coupling result of an exponential suppression of the specific heat at low temperatures by a power-law behavior. Rather intriguing is the behavior of the free quantum Brownian particle. In this case, quantum dissipation is able to restore the Third Law: Instead of being constant down to zero temperature, the specific heat now vanishes proportional to temperature with an amplitude that is inversely proportional to the ohmic dissipation strength. A distinct subtlety of finite quantum dissipation is the result that the various thermodynamic functions of the sub-system do not only depend on the dissipation strength but depend as well on the prescription employed in their definition.
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"abstract": "The quantum thermodynamic behavior of small systems is investigated in\npresence of finite quantum dissipation. We consider the archetype cases of a\ndamped harmonic oscillator and a free quantum Brownian particle. A main finding\nis that quantum dissipation helps to ensure the validity of the Third Law. For\nthe quantum oscillator, finite damping replaces the zero-coupling result of an\nexponential suppression of the specific heat at low temperatures by a power-law\nbehavior. Rather intriguing is the behavior of the free quantum Brownian\nparticle. In this case, quantum dissipation is able to restore the Third Law:\nInstead of being constant down to zero temperature, the specific heat now\nvanishes proportional to temperature with an amplitude that is inversely\nproportional to the ohmic dissipation strength. A distinct subtlety of finite\nquantum dissipation is the result that the various thermodynamic functions of\nthe sub-system do not only depend on the dissipation strength but depend as\nwell on the prescription employed in their definition.",
"arxiv_id": "quant-ph/0601056",
"authors": [
"Peter H\u00e4nggi",
"Gert-Ludwig Ingold"
],
"categories": [
"quant-ph"
],
"journal_ref": "Acta Phys. Pol. B 37, 1537-1550 (2006)",
"title": "Quantum Brownian motion and the Third Law of thermodynamics",
"url": "https://arxiv.org/abs/quant-ph/0601056"
},
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