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arXiv:2604.15953

Finite-Time Thermodynamics of an Autonomous Information Machine

Wanyan Chen, Miao Chen, Yu-Han Ma

quant-phcond-mat.stat-mechSubmitted Apr 17, 2026• Announced Apr 20, 2026• Revised Sep 11, 2026 (v2)
v1 · Apr 17, 2026v2 · Sep 11, 2026
arXivHTMLPDF

Abstract

While externally driven information engines are well understood, the thermodynamic constraints of their autonomous counterparts remain an open question. Here, we investigate the finite-time operation of an autonomous machine functioning as both an information eraser and a refrigerator, revealing that its irreversibility is bounded by the transient information geometry. Beyond steady-state boundaries, we map the landscape of optimal operation times across both functional modes, uncovering a unique synergistic regime where erasure power $P$ and efficiency $η$ increase simultaneously. Fundamentally, this performance is governed by a trade-off relation, $v(1-η)P/η\le D$, where $v$ is the operational speed and $D$ denotes an information-geometric distance. Our findings pave the way for optimizing fast autonomous information-energy conversion.

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6 pages,3 figures. Comments are welcome! For more relevant studies, refer to our homepage [https://yhmayyds.group/]

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While externally driven information engines are well understood, the thermodynamic constraints of their autonomous counterparts remain an open question. Here, we investigate the finite-time operation of an autonomous machine functioning as both an information eraser and a refrigerator, revealing that its irreversibility is bounded by the transient information geometry. Beyond steady-state boundaries, we map the landscape of optimal operation times across both functional modes, uncovering a unique synergistic regime where erasure power PPP and efficiency ηηη increase simultaneously. Fundamentally, this performance is governed by a trade-off relation, v(1−η)P/η≤Dv(1-η)P/η\le Dv(1−η)P/η≤D, where vvv is the operational speed and DDD denotes an information-geometric distance. Our findings pave the way for optimizing fast autonomous information-energy conversion.
We investigate the conversion between thermal and informational resources in an autonomous machine coupled to thermal reservoirs and a tape, playing the role of an information reservoir. The machine is able to perform information erasure driven by heat, and information-powered refrigeration, for which we introduce suitable efficiency definitions. We focus on the role of fluctuations in the currents and stochastic efficiencies, as well as in operation at optimal performance. The model is also extended to allow a coherent information reservoir, which is able to modify operation and performance. All in all, our work provides insights for the design and optimization of information-to-work conversion devices at small scales.
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Irreversibility has a fundamental thermodynamic cost, erasing information inevitably generates heat. This connection is quantified by the Landauer bound, which gives the minimum dissipation needed to erase a single bit of information. While this bound applies in both classical and quantum settings, it is saturated only in idealised limits of infinite resources. Here, we provide a unified first principles description of finite-resource erasure in both classical and quantum systems. We begin by proving the communal folklore that in the idealised regime the erasure cost of a bit encoded in a quantum or classical system is the same. Despite this, we show that their practical implementation differs substantially: achieving comparable erasure quality in quantum systems requires more control, larger accessible energy gaps and longer operation times. Classical protocols can achieve the erasure of a comparable quantum protocol under far weaker constraints which we expose in trade-off relations. Our results explain why practical erasure schemes fall short of Landauer's bound and show that classical systems enjoy several fundamental thermodynamic advantages.
Time remains one of the least well-understood concepts in physics, most notably in quantum mechanics.A central goal is to find the fundamental limits of measuring time.One of the main obstacles is the fact that time is not an observable and thus has to be measured indirectly.Here, we explore these questions by introducing a model of time measurements that is complete and autonomous.Specifically, our autonomous quantum clock consists of a system out of thermal equilibrium-a prerequisite for any system to function as a clock-powered by minimal resources, namely, two thermal baths at different temperatures.Through a detailed analysis of this specific clock model, we find that the laws of thermodynamics dictate a trade-off between the amount of dissipated heat and the clock's performance in terms of its accuracy and resolution.Our results furthermore imply that a fundamental entropy production is associated with the operation of any autonomous quantum clock, assuming that quantum machines cannot achieve perfect efficiency at finite power.More generally, autonomous clocks provide a natural framework for the exploration of fundamental questions about time in quantum theory and beyond.