arXiv subjects

Maurício Matos

Publications and source records attributed to Maurício Matos.

3 recordsLinked to original sources

arXiv2026

Thermoforesis from generalized Caldeira-Leggett models

The standard Caldeira-Leggett model addresses the problem of Brownian motion in a thermal equilibrium environment. Here, we look for generalizations of the Caldeira-Leggett model to account for thermal gradients in the environment. We devise two types of models, and discuss the advantages and limitations of each one. From both models, we find signatures of thermophoresis, i.e., particle transport due to a thermal gradient. In principle, our models can be employed to describe thermophoresis in quantum Brownian particles, an open problem so far.

quant-ph↗

arXiv2024

Quantum thermophoresis

Thermophoresis is the migration of a particle due to a thermal gradient. Here, we theoretically uncover the quantum version of thermophoresis. As a proof of principle, we analytically find a thermophoretic force on a trapped quantum particle having three energy levels in $Λ$ configuration. We then consider a model of N sites, each coupled to its first neighbors and subjected to a local bath at a certain temperature, so as to show numerically how quantum thermophoresis behaves with increasing delocalization of the quantum particle. We discuss how negative thermophoresis and the Dufour effect appear in the quantum regime.

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arXiv2022

Emergence of energy-avoiding and energy-seeking behaviours in nonequilibrium dissipative quantum systems

A longstanding challenge in nonequilibrium thermodynamics is to predict the emergence of self-organized behaviours and functionalities typical of living matter. Despite the progress with classical complex systems, it remains far from obvious how to extrapolate these results down to the quantum scale. Here, we employ the paradigmatic master equation framework to establish that some lifelike behaviours and functionalities can indeed emerge in elementary dissipative quantum systems driven out of equilibrium. Specifically, we find both energy-avoiding (low steady dissipation) and energy-seeking behaviours (high steady dissipation), as well as self-adaptive shifts between these modes, in generic few-level systems. We also find emergent functionalities, namely, a self-organized thermal gradient in the system's environment (in the energy-seeking mode) and an active equilibration against thermal gradients (in the energy-avoiding mode). Finally, we discuss the possibility that our results could be related to the concept of dissipative adaptation.

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