arXiv subjects

Felipe Barra

Publications and source records attributed to Felipe Barra.

At least 37 records · Page 2Linked to original sources

arXiv2019

Dissipative charging of a quantum battery

We show that a cyclic unitary process can extract work from the thermodynamic equilibrium state of an engineered quantum dissipative process. Systems in the equilibrium states of these processes serve as batteries, storing energy. The dissipative process that brings the battery to the active equilibrium state is driven by an agent that couples the battery to thermal systems. The second law of thermodynamics imposes a work cost for the process; however, no work is needed to keep the battery in that charged state. We consider simple examples of these batteries and discuss particular cases in which the extracted work or the efficiency of the process is maximal.

quant-ph↗

arXiv2018

A Landau-Zener Lindblad equation and work extraction from coherences

We show that the dynamics of a driven quantum system weakly coupled to a finite reservoir can be approximated by a sequence of Landau-Zener transitions if the level spacing of the reservoir is large enough. This approximation can be formulated as a repeated interaction dynamics and leads to a quantum master equation for the driven system which is of Lindblad form. The approach is validated by comparison with the numerically exact full system dynamics. To emphasize the role of coherence in the master equation, we propose a model-system which shows that in its presence, work can be extracted from a thermal reservoir while if the coherences vanish no work can be extracted.

cond-mat.stat-mech↗

arXiv2017

Kinetics and thermodynamics of a driven open quantum system

Redfield theory provides a closed kinetic description of a quantum system in weak contact with a very dense reservoir. Landau-Zener theory does the same for a time-dependent driven system in contact with a sparse reservoir. Using a simple model, we analyze the validity of these two theories by comparing their predictions with exact numerical results. We show that despite their a priori different range of validity, these two descriptions can give rise to an identical quantum master equation. Both theories can be used for a nonequilibrium thermodynamic description which we show is consistent with exact thermodynamic identities evaluated in the full system-reservoir space. We emphasize the importance of properly accounting for the system-reservoir interaction energy and of operating in regimes where the reservoir can be considered as close to ideal.

cond-mat.stat-mech↗

arXiv2017

Stochastic thermodynamics of quantum maps with and without equilibrium

We study stochastic thermodynamics for a quantum system of interest whose dynamics are described by a completely positive trace-preserving (CPTP) map as a result of its interaction with a thermal bath. We define CPTP maps with equilibrium as CPTP maps with an invariant state such that the entropy production due to the action of the map on the invariant state vanishes. Thermal maps are a subgroup of CPTP maps with equilibrium. In general, for CPTP maps, the thermodynamic quantities, such as the entropy production or work performed on the system, depend on the combined state of the system plus its environment. We show that these quantities can be written in terms of system properties for maps with equilibrium. The relations that we obtain are valid for arbitrary coupling strengths between the system and the thermal bath. The fluctuations of thermodynamic quantities are considered in the framework of a two-point measurement scheme. We derive the entropy production fluctuation theorem for general maps and a fluctuation relation for the stochastic work on a system that starts in the Gibbs state. Some simplifications for the probability distributions in the case of maps with equilibrium are presented. We illustrate our results by considering spin 1/2 systems under thermal maps, non-thermal maps with equilibrium, maps with non-equilibrium steady states and concatenations of them. Finally, we consider a particular limit in which the concatenation of maps generates a continuous time evolution in Lindblad form for the system of interest, and we show that the concept of maps with and without equilibrium translates into Lindblad equations with and without quantum detailed balance, respectively. The consequences for the thermodynamic quantities in this limit are discussed.

quant-ph↗

arXiv2017

The smallest absorption refrigerator: the thermodynamics of a system with quantum local detailed balance

We study the thermodynamics of a quantum system interacting with different baths in the repeated interaction framework. In an appropriate limit, the evolution takes the Lindblad form and the corresponding thermodynamic quantities are determined by the state of the full system plus baths. We identify conditions under which the thermodynamics of the open system can be described only by system properties and find a quantum local detailed balance condition with respect to an equilibrium state that may not be a Gibbs state. The three-qubit refrigerator introduced in [N. Linden, S. Popescu and P. Skrzypczyk, Phys. Rev. Lett.$ {\bf 105}$, 130401 (2010)] is an example of such a system. From a repeated interaction microscopic model we derive the Lindblad equation that describes its dynamics and discuss its thermodynamic properties for arbitrary values of the internal coupling between the qubits. We find that external power (proportional to the internal coupling strength) is required to bring the system to its steady state, but once there, it works autonomously as discussed in [N. Linden, S. Popescu and P. Skrzypczyk, Phys. Rev. Lett. ${\bf 105}$, 130401 (2010)].

quant-ph↗

arXiv2016

Dissipation in small systems: A Landau-Zener approach

We establish a stochastic thermodynamics for a Fermionic level driven by a time-dependent force and interacting with initially thermalized levels playing the role of a reservoir. The driving induces consecutive avoided crossings between system and reservoir levels described within Landau-Zener theory. We derive the resulting system dynamics and thermodynamics and identify energy, work, heat, entropy and dissipation. Our theory perfectly reproduces the numerically exact quantum work statistics obtained using a two point measurements approach of the total energy and provides an explicit expression for the dissipation in terms of diabatic transitions.

cond-mat.stat-mech↗

arXiv2015

The thermodynamic cost of driving quantum systems by their boundaries

The laws of thermodynamics put limits to the efficiencies of thermal machines. Analogues of these laws are now established for quantum engines weakly and passively coupled to the environment providing a framework to find improvements to their performance. Systems whose interaction with the environment is actively controlled do not fall in that framework. Here we consider systems actively and locally coupled to the environment, evolving with a so-called boundary-driven Lindblad equation. Starting from a unitary description of the system plus the environment we simultaneously obtain the Lindblad equation and the appropriate expressions for heat, work and entropy-production of the system extending the framework for the analysis of new, and some already proposed, quantum heat engines. We illustrate our findings in spin 1/2 chains and explain why an XX chain coupled in this way to a single heat bath relaxes to thermodynamic-equilibrium while and XY chain does not. Additionally, we show that an XX chain coupled to a left and a right heat baths behaves as a quantum engine, a heater or refrigerator depending on the parameters, with efficiencies bounded by Carnot efficiencies.

quant-ph↗

arXiv2015

Multiple scattering of elastic waves by pinned dislocation segments in a continuum

The coherent propagation of elastic waves in a solid filled with a random distribution of pinned dislocation segments is studied to all orders in perturbation theory. It is shown that, within the independent scattering approximation, the perturbation series that generates the mass operator is a geometric series that can thus be formally summed. A divergent quantity is shown to be renormalizable to zero at low frequencies. At higher frequencies said quantity can be expressed in terms of a cut-off with dimensions of length, related to the dislocation length, and physical quantities can be computed in terms of two parameters, to be determined by experiment. The approach used in this problem is compared and contrasted with the scattering of de Broglie waves by delta-function potentials as described by the Schrödinger equation.

cond-mat.mtrl-sci↗

arXiv2014

Nonequilibrium Quantum Phase Transitions in the XY model: comparison of unitary time evolution and reduced density matrix approaches

We study nonequilibrium quantum phase transitions in XY spin 1/2 chain using the $C^*$ algebra. We show that the well-known quantum phase transition at magnetic field $h = 1$ persists also in the nonequilibrium setting as long as one of the reservoirs is set to absolute zero temperature. In addition, we find nonequilibrium phase transitions associated to imaginary part of the correlation matrix for any two different temperatures of the reservoirs at $h = 1$ and $h = h_{\rm c} \equiv|1-γ^2|$, where $γ$ is the anisotropy and $h$ the magnetic field strength. In particular, two nonequilibrium quantum phase transitions coexist at $h=1$. In addition we also study the quantum mutual information in all regimes and find a logarithmic correction of the area law in the nonequilibrium steady state independent of the system parameters. We use these nonequilibrium phase transitions to test the utility of two models of reduced density operator, namely Lindblad mesoreservoir and modified Redfield equation. We show that the nonequilibrium quantum phase transition at $h = 1$ related to the divergence of magnetic susceptibility is recovered in the mesoreservoir approach, whereas it is not recovered using the Redfield master equation formalism. However none of the reduced density operator approaches could recover all the transitions observed by the $C^*$ algebra. We also study thermalization properties of the mesoreservoir approach.

quant-ph↗

arXiv2013

Nonequilibrium mesoscopic Fermi reservoirs distributions and particle current through a coherent quantum system

We study particle current and occupation distribution in a recently proposed model for coherent quantum transport. In this model a system connected to mesoscopic Fermi reservoirs (mesoreservoir) is driven out of equilibrium by the action of superreservoirs with prescribed temperatures and chemical potentials described by a simple dissipative mechanism with the Lindblad equation. We compare exact (numerical) results for the non-equilibrium steady state particle current with theoretical expectations based on the Landauer formula and show that the model reproduce the behavior of coherent quantum systems in the expected parameter region. We also obtain the occupation distribution on the mesoreservoir in the non-equilibrium steady state and compare them with the occupation distribution on the leads in usual description of coherent quantum transport.

cond-mat.mes-hall↗

arXiv2012

Diffusive transport of waves in a periodic waveguide

We study the propagation of waves in quasi-one-dimensional finite periodic systems whose classical (ray) dynamics is diffusive. By considering a random matrix model for a chain of $L$ identical chaotic cavities, we show that its average conductance as a function of $L$ displays an ohmic behavior even though the system has no disorder. This behavior, with an average conductance decay $N/L$, where $N$ is the number of propagating modes in the leads that connect the cavities, holds for $1\ll L \lesssim \sqrt{N}.$ After this regime, the average conductance saturates at a value of ${\mathcal O}(\sqrt{N})$ given by the average number of propagating Bloch modes $ $ of the infinite chain. We also study the weak localization correction and conductance distribution, and characterize its behavior as the system undergoes the transition from diffusive to Bloch-ballistic. These predictions are tested in a periodic cosine waveguide.

cond-mat.dis-nn↗

arXiv2011

Quantum statistical mechanics in infinitely extended systems ($C^*$ algebraic approach)

The derivation of macroscopic irreversible dynamics of nonequilibrium systems from microscopic equations was recently revisited from the point of view of infinitely extended quantum systems. Here we have briefly reviewed the $C^*$ algebra and its application to equilibrium systems as well as introduced some recent results on NESS. In addition, we have demonstrated the derivation of Landauer formula rigorously for quadratic systems but using a more physical presentation.

math-ph↗

arXiv2011

Shear Modulus of an Elastic Solid under External Pressure as a function of Temperature: The case of Helium

The energy of a dislocation loop in a continuum elastic solid under pressure is considered within the framework of classical mechanics. For a circular loop, this is a function with a maximum at pressures that are well within reach of experimental conditions for solid helium suggesting, in this case, that dislocation loops can be generated by a pressure-assisted thermally activated process. It is also pointed out that pinned dislocations segments can alter the shear response of solid helium, by an amount consistent with current measurements, without any unpinning.

cond-mat.other↗

arXiv2011

Number of propagating modes of a diffusive periodic waveguide in the semiclassical limit

We study the number of propagating Bloch modes N_B of an infinite periodic billiard chain. The asymptotic semiclassical behavior of this quantity depends on the phase-space dynamics of the unit cell, growing linearly with the wavenumber k in systems with a non-null measure of ballistic trajectories and going like ~ sqrt(k) in diffusive systems. We have calculated numerically N_B for a waveguide with cosine-shaped walls exhibiting strongly diffusive dynamics. The semiclassical prediction for diffusive systems is verified to good accuracy and a connection between this result and the universality of the parametric variation of energy levels is presented.

quant-ph↗

arXiv2009

Fractality of the non-equilibrium stationary states of open volume-preserving systems: I. Tagged particle diffusion

Deterministic diffusive systems such as the periodic Lorentz gas, multi-baker map, as well as spatially periodic systems of interacting particles, have non-equilibrium stationary states with fractal properties when put in contact with particle reservoirs at their boundaries. We study the macroscopic limits of these systems and establish a correspondence between the thermodynamics of the macroscopic diffusion process and the fractality of the stationary states that characterize the phase-space statistics. In particular the entropy production rate is recovered from first principles using a formalism due to Gaspard [J. Stat. Phys. 88, 1215 (1997)]. This article is the first of two; the second article considers the influence of a uniform external field on such systems.

cond-mat.stat-mech↗

arXiv2009

Fractality of the non-equilibrium stationary states of open volume-preserving systems: II. Galton boards

Galton boards are models of deterministic diffusion in a uniform external field, akin to driven periodic Lorentz gases, here considered in the absence of dissipation mechanism. Assuming a cylindrical geometry with axis along the direction of the external field, the two-dimensional board becomes a model for one-dimensional mass transport along the direction of the external field. This is a purely diffusive process which admits fractal non-equilibrium stationary states under flux boundary conditions. Analytical results are obtained for the statistics of multi-baker maps modeling such a non-uniform diffusion process. A correspondence is established between the local phase-space statistics and their macroscopic counter-parts. The fractality of the invariant state is shown to be responsible for the positiveness of the entropy production rate.

cond-mat.stat-mech↗

arXiv2008

Measuring Dislocation Density in Aluminum with Resonant Ultrasound Spectroscopy

Dislocations in a material will, when present in enough numbers, change the speed of propagation of elastic waves. Consequently, two material samples, differing only in dislocation density, will have different elastic constants, a quantity that can be measured using Resonant Ultrasound Spectroscopy. Measurements of this effect on aluminum samples are reported. They compare well with the predictions of the theory.

cond-mat.mtrl-sci↗

arXiv2007

Log-periodic drift oscillations in self-similar billiards

We study a particle moving at unit speed in a self-similar Lorentz billiard channel; the latter consists of an infinite sequence of cells which are identical in shape but growing exponentially in size, from left to right. We present numerical computation of the drift term in this system and establish the logarithmic periodicity of the corrections to the average drift.

nlin.CD↗