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arXiv:2012.10193 · Journal of Non-Equilibrium Thermodynamics

A Rigorous Scattering Approach to Quasifree Fermionic Systems out of Equilibrium

Walter H. Aschbacher

Published Mar 27, 2019• 1 citation
arXivHTMLPDF

Abstract

Abstract Within the rigorous axiomatic framework for the description of quantum mechanical systems with a large number of degrees of freedom, we construct the so-called nonequilibrium steady state for the quasifree fermionic system corresponding to the isotropic XY chain in which a finite sample, subject to a local gauge breaking anisotropy perturbation, is coupled to two thermal reservoirs at different temperatures. Using time dependent and stationary scattering theory, we rigorously prove, from first principles, that the nonequilibrium system under consideration is thermodynamically nontrivial, i. e., that its entropy production rate is strictly positive.

DOI
10.1515/jnet-2018-0071

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Abstract Within the rigorous axiomatic framework for the description of quantum mechanical systems with a large number of degrees of freedom, we construct the so-called nonequilibrium steady state for the quasifree fermionic system corresponding to the isotropic XY chain in which a finite sample, subject to a local gauge breaking anisotropy perturbation, is coupled to two thermal reservoirs at different temperatures. Using time dependent and stationary scattering theory, we rigorously prove, from first principles, that the nonequilibrium system under consideration is thermodynamically nontrivial, i. e., that its entropy production rate is strictly positive.
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Using the framework of rigorous algebraic quantum statistical mechanics, we construct the unique nonequilibrium steady state in the isotropic XY chain in which a sample of arbitrary finite size is coupled by a bond coupling perturbation of arbitrary strength to two infinitely extended thermal reservoirs, and we prove that this state is thermodynamically nontrivial. Moreover, extracting the leading second-order contribution to its microscopic entropy production and deriving its entropy production in the van Hove weak coupling regime, we prove that, in the mathematically and physically important XY chain, the van Hove regime reproduces the leading order contribution to the microscopic regime.
We consider open quantum systems consisting of a finite system of independent fermions with arbitrary Hamiltonian coupled to one or more equilibrium fermion reservoirs (which need not be in equilibrium with each other). A strong form of the third law of thermodynamics, S(T) → 0 as T → 0, is proven for fully open quantum systems in thermal equilibrium with their environment, defined as systems where all states are broadened due to environmental coupling. For generic open quantum systems, it is shown that S(T) → g ln 2 as T → 0, where g is the number of localized states lying exactly at the chemical potential of the reservoir. For driven open quantum systems in a nonequilibrium steady state, it is shown that the local entropy Sx;T→0 as T(x) → 0, except for cases of measure zero arising due to localized states, where T(x) is the temperature measured by a local thermometer.
We consider the generic model of a finite-size quantum electron system connected to two (temperature and particle) reservoirs. The quantum open system is driven out of equilibrium by the presence of both potential temperature and chemical differences between the two reservoirs. The nonequilibrium (NE) thermodynamical properties of such a quantum open system are studied for the steady state regime. In such a regime, the corresponding NE density matrix is built on the so-called generalised Gibbs ensembles. From different expressions of the NE density matrix, we can identify the terms related to the entropy production in the system. We show, for a simple model, that the entropy production rate is always a positive quantity. Alternative expressions for the entropy production are also obtained from the Gibbs–von Neumann conventional formula and discussed in detail. Our results corroborate and expand earlier works found in the literature.
The thermodynamic entropy production for the scattering processes of noninteracting bosons and fermions in mesoscopic systems is shown to be related to the difference between the Connes–Narnhofer–Thirring entropy per unit time, characterizing temporal disorder in the motion of quantum particles, and the associated time-reversed coentropy per unit time. Under nonequilibrium conditions, the positivity of thermodynamic entropy production can thus be interpreted as a time-reversal symmetry breaking in the temporal disorder of the quantum transport process. Moreover, the full counting statistics of both fermionic and bosonic quantum transport is formulated in relation with the energy and particle currents producing thermodynamic entropy in nonequilibrium steady states.