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arXiv:2608.24967

Heat Transfer and Torque in Enclosing Cylindrical Configurations with Nonreciprocal Materials

Dhruv Shah, Kiryl Asheichyk, David Gelbwaser-Klimovsky, Noah Graham, Mehran Kardar, Matthias Krüger

cond-mat.stat-mechquant-phSubmitted Aug 25, 2026• Announced Aug 26, 2026
arXivHTMLPDF

Abstract

Electromagnetic fluctuations can transfer not only energy but also angular momentum, leading to forces, torques, heat currents, and friction in out-of-equilibrium setups. In enclosing configurations, we show that if at least one of two objects is rotationally symmetric, the torque is bounded by heat transfer, since both arise from photon transfers with angular momentum $\hbar n$ and energy $\hbarω$. With only one object assumed to be rotationally symmetric, it may be possible to obtain a nonzero torque with reciprocal media, but nonreciprocal media are required to break the symmetry between $n$ and $-n$ and produce a nonzero torque if both objects are rotationally symmetric. We then specialize to concentric cylinders with a nonreciprocal dielectric response and use Rytov fluctuational electrodynamics to express heat transfer and torque in terms of an angular-momentum-resolved flux density, $Φ_n(ω)$. We also analyze the conditions for stable levitation of the inner cylinder using the proximity force approximation, in the process obtaining a new analytic formula for the normal Casimir force between dilute plates at different temperatures. Finally, to find the extracted work in a contactless engine setup, we compute the fluctuation-induced friction for a slowly rotating inner cylinder, and we find a bound between torque, friction, and heat transfer. Due to this bound, the efficiency of the heat engine remains bounded by the Carnot limit.

Comments
19 pages, 7 figures

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Electromagnetic fluctuations can transfer not only energy but also angular momentum, leading to forces, torques, heat currents, and friction in out-of-equilibrium setups. In enclosing configurations, we show that if at least one of two objects is rotationally symmetric, the torque is bounded by heat transfer, since both arise from photon transfers with angular momentum ℏn\hbar nℏn and energy ℏω\hbarωℏω. With only one object assumed to be rotationally symmetric, it may be possible to obtain a nonzero torque with reciprocal media, but nonreciprocal media are required to break the symmetry between nnn and −n-n−n and produce a nonzero torque if both objects are rotationally symmetric. We then specialize to concentric cylinders with a nonreciprocal dielectric response and use Rytov fluctuational electrodynamics to express heat transfer and torque in terms of an angular-momentum-resolved flux density, Φn(ω)Φ_n(ω)Φn​(ω). We also analyze the conditions for stable levitation of the inner cylinder using the proximity force approximation, in the process obtaining a new analytic formula for the normal Casimir force between dilute plates at different temperatures. Finally, to find the extracted work in a contactless engine setup, we compute the fluctuation-induced friction for a slowly rotating inner cylinder, and we find a bound between torque, friction, and heat transfer. Due to this bound, the efficiency of the heat engine remains bounded by the Carnot limit.
We describe a contactless heat engine in which quantum and thermal electromagnetic fluctuations act as the working medium. The setup consists of two concentric cylinders held at different temperatures. The inner cylinder stably levitates within the outer one due to repulsive nonequilibrium Casimir forces. The chirality of the setup is broken by using nonreciprocal dielectric materials, akin to application of a magnetic field along the common cylinder axis. Using Rytov fluctuational electrodynamics, we show that heat transfer and torque can be expressed in terms of an angular-momentum-resolved heat flux density, Φn(ω)Φ_n(ω)Φn​(ω): each exchanged photon carries energy ℏω\hbar ωℏω and angular momentum ℏn\hbar nℏn. In reciprocal media contributions from modes nnn and −n-n−n cancel and there is no net torque; nonreciprocity breaks this symmetry and powers rotation of the inner cylinder. Even in the absence of contact, electromagnetic fluctuations produce a frictional torque opposing rotation that we compute. This enables computation of characteristic steady state rotations, and estimation of the engine efficiency (which remains bounded by the Carnot limit). The cylindrical setup provides a natural realization of fluctuation-induced angular-momentum transfer and a possible route toward nanoscale contactless engines.
Casimir torque is conventionally associated with explicit breaking of rotational symmetry, arising from material dielectric anisotropy, geometric asymmetry, or externally applied fields that themselves break rotational invariance. Here we demonstrate a fundamentally different mechanism: an axially symmetric magnetic field can generate a Casimir torque by inducing an axially asymmetric Casimir energy - and can even reverse the torque's sign. Focusing on two-dimensional altermagnets, we show that a magnetic field applied perpendicular to the plane - while preserving in-plane rotational symmetry - activates an orientation-dependent vacuum interaction through the combined crystalline symmetry CnT\mathrm{C_n T}Cn​T inherent to altermagnetic order. The resulting torque emerges continuously and scales quadratically with the magnetic field strength. We further analyze its temperature and distance dependence, revealing scaling behaviors that are qualitatively different from those found in uniaxial bulk materials. Our results identify time-reversal symmetry breaking as a powerful route for engineering both the sign and strength of Casimir torque and establish altermagnets as an exciting platform for exploring phenomena driven by vacuum quantum fluctuations.
A nonabsorbing particle rotating in vacuum can lose angular momentum only by converting mechanical energy into electromagnetic radiation. Here, we develop a quantum theory of rotational vacuum friction for small lossless particles and show that axial symmetry qualitatively changes the leading dissipation channel. At zero temperature, the frictional torque scales as M∝Ω7M\proptoΩ^7M∝Ω7 with rotation frequency  Omega\ Omega Omega in anisotropic particles due to the emission of correlated photon pairs whose frequencies sum to 2Ω2Ω2Ω, while a contribution to the torque linear in  Omega\ Omega Omega is found at finite temperature. In contrast, axisymmetric particles are protected against photon-assisted friction regardless of temperature.
Quantum and thermal electromagnetic fluctuations give rise to macroscopic phenomena such as Casimir–Lifshitz forces and radiative heat transfer. In this colloquium, I will introduce the common theoretical framework underlying these effects and discuss how they can be shaped and controlled through geometry, material properties, and nonequilibrium conditions. I will first discuss the giant Casimir torque arising between rotated metallic gratings, where a geometric transition at zero relative angle produces an anomalous torque enhancement and points toward the realization of a contactless quantum-vacuum torsional spring. I will then present a Kapitza-like mechanism for near-field radiative heat transfer, showing how rapid modulation of the vacuum gap or of the material response can alter the time-averaged thermal dynamics, shift stationary temperatures, and can stabilize or destabilize thermal steady states. Together, these examples illustrate emerging strategies for controlling mechanical forces and heat transport through shaping light–matter interactions.
We propose to use a rotating corrugated material plate in order to stir, through the Casimir-Polder interaction, quantized vortices in an harmonically trapped Bose-Einstein condensate. The emergence of such vortices within the condensate cannot be explained with a computation of the Casimir-Polder potential based on the pairwise summation approach or on the proximity force approximation. It thus appears as a genuine signature of non-trivial geometry effects on the electromagnetic vacuum fluctuations, which fully exploits the superfluid nature of the sample. In order to discuss quantitatively the generation of Casimir-driven vortices, we derive an exact non-perturbative theory of the Casimir-Polder potential felt by the atoms in front of the grating. Our numerical results for a Rb condensate close to a Si grating show that the resulting quantum vacuum torque is strong enough to provide a contactless transfer of angular momentum to the condensate and generate quantized vortices under realistic experimental conditions at separation distances around 3 μm.
The motion of a particle in vacuum near macroscopic bodies gives rise to a Magnus-like contribution to the nonequilibrium Casimir-Polder force. This effect originates from the interplay between particle dynamics and material-modified electromagnetic quantum fluctuations, inducing in the particle a direction-dependent angular momentum coupled to the electromagnetic field spin. The resulting drift force is proportional to the cross product of the particle's angular and translational velocities, revealing a rotational transport component in the nonequilibrium Casimir-Polder interaction. Our results establish a striking connection between quantum fluctuations-induced forces and the classical Magnus effect in fluid dynamics.