Contents - Max-Planck-Institut für Physik komplexer Systeme
Contents - Max-Planck-Institut für Physik komplexer Systeme
Contents - Max-Planck-Institut für Physik komplexer Systeme
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AdvancedStudyGroup2010:Quantumthermodynamicsoffinitesystems<br />
(Convenor:Prof.Dr.GerhardC.Hegerfeldt)<br />
Members: J.GonzaloMuga(UniversidaddelPasVasco,Spain),LarrySchulman(ClarksonUniversity,<br />
USA),BernardGaveau(UniversitParisVI,France),GiulioCasati(UniversitdegliStudidell’Insubria,<br />
Italia),RafaelSala-Mayato(UniversidaddeLaLaguna,Spain)<br />
TheAdvancedStudyGrouptookplacefromJunetoSeptember2010. Thecompositionofthegroup<br />
changedwithtimeandasaconsequencetheresearchpersuedandtheemphasisputondifferentresearch<br />
topicsalsochangedwithtime.<br />
FromthestartoftheASG,Gaveau,Schulmanandtheconvenorwerepresent.Thetwoformercontinued<br />
towrestlewiththeirthermodynamicsresearchonpower,smallenginesandentanglement. Interpreting<br />
the“study”mandatebroadly,therewasanintenseinteractionforaweekwithavisitorfromAthens,<br />
AntigoneNounou,aphilosopherwithphysicsbackgroundandinterestsingaugefieldsandtheAharonov-<br />
Bohmeffect. AntigoneNounouisoneofthoseparticipatinginacurrentdebateinthephilosophy<br />
communityontherealityofgaugefields.Duringhervisittothe mpipksshegavearousingseminaron<br />
“explanation”,“rousing”inthesensethatsomeofthosewhoattendedwererousedfromskepticismand<br />
self-assurance,torealizethatitcansometimesbedifficulttoknowwhatwemeanasexplanation.The<br />
realitydebatecanlikewisebedifficultforthephysicisttoappreciate,butinanycasethequestionshe<br />
raisedchallengedSchulman’snotionofhowtodealwithmultipleconnectnessinthepathintegral.The<br />
outcomewasapreprint,co-authoredbyGaveau,NounouandSchulman,inwhichtheoriginalhomotopy<br />
ideasretaintheirvalidityinthecontextofthetime-dependentAharonov-Bohmeffect. Therewasalso<br />
overlapwiththeconvenor’srecentexplanationoftheAharonov-Bohmeffectthroughforces.<br />
Whiletheadvancedstudygroupwasinsessionquiteanumberofworkshopsandconferenceswereheld<br />
atthe mpipks,andofcoursetheparticipantsoftheASGtooktheopportunitytoattendsomeofthe<br />
lectures.InaworkshoponBECatthe mpipkstherewasatalkbyJ.Schmiedmayer(Vienna)reporting<br />
experimentalworkrelatingtothermalizationforatomsintraps.Thiswasofobviousinterestforus,and<br />
duringdiscussionswithhimhesuggestedinvitingI.MazetsfromhisgroupasavisitortotheASG.The<br />
latter’svisitledtoanintenseinterchangeonthermalizationinquantumoptics.<br />
Asregardsthenumberofmembersandvisitorspresent,Augustwasthebusiestmonth. Themembers<br />
GonzaloMuga,LarrySchulman,BernardGaveau,RafaelSala-Mayatoandtheconvenorwerejoined<br />
towardtheendofAugustbyGiulioCasati.ThevisitorsinAugustincludedYairEzer,ErikKosloff,Erik<br />
Torrontegui,DavidGuery-Odelin,AndreasRuschhaupt,DanielAlonso,andGünterMahlerwhovisited<br />
forthreeweeks.<br />
ThecollaborationofA.RuschhauptandG.MugawithG.Mahler,withhisexpertise,clarifiedathermodynamicaldescriptionofone-waybarriersandatomdiodes.TheoverlapwithCasatisgroupwasalso<br />
stimulating,astheyproposeheat-one-waybarriers.Thesearemostlyclassicaldevices,andthechallenge<br />
wastofindaquantumphysicalimplementation.<br />
DuringaninformaltalkbyR.Sala-MayatoontheproblemshewasinvestigatingwithG.Mugathe<br />
convenorremarkedonaconnectiontothemeasuringproblemasformulatedbyvonNeumannandlater<br />
somewhatdifferentlybyLüders. Outofthisremarkhasgrownacollaborationonhowtopossibly<br />
distinguishexperimentallybetweenthesetwoapproaches.<br />
InthelastmonthoftheASG,thethermoelectriceffectandtheassociatedthermodynamicefficiency,<br />
writtenintermsoftheso-calledfigureofmerit ZT,wasexaminedingreatdetailinjointdiscussionsby<br />
CasatiandparticipantsoftheASG.Inparticulartheincreaseof ZTwasinvestigated.Theunderstanding<br />
ofthepossiblemicroscopicmechanismleadingtoanincreaseof ZT isatpresentquitelimited. These<br />
commonsessionstookplaceeverydayandlastedseveralhourseachday. Themainpointisthat<br />
dynamicalnonlinearsystemsmayprovideanewapproachtotheproblemandmayallowtounveilthe<br />
physicalmechanismswhichmayleadtohighthermoelectricefficiency. Asaresultofthesediscussions<br />
severallinesoffutureresearchhavebeenproposed,discussedanddetermined.Researchalongtheselines<br />
isnowinprogressasacollaborationamongdifferentscientistswhohaveparticipatedinthestudygroup.<br />
ParticipantsoftheASGestablishedfruitfulinteractionswithotherresearchersofthe mpipksandwith<br />
membersoftheTechnicalUniversityofDresden,inparticularwithMasudulHaque,IngridRotterand<br />
MarkMineev-Weinsteinfromthe mpipksaswellaswithAlexanderEisfeldandRolandKetzmerickfrom<br />
theuniversity.<br />
1.10. AdvancedStudyGroups 37