We investigate the thermodynamic consequences of longitudinal-transverse cross-spectral reservoir correlations in a finite-time quantum Otto engine with a two-level working medium. Each reservoir couples through excitation-relaxation and dephasing channels whose fluctuations are characterized by a Hermitian positive-semidefinite spectral-density matrix, with the off-diagonal elements encoding their cross correlations. The finite-time isochoric dynamics is derived within the second-order time-convolutionless framework, without imposing the Markov limit at the outset, so that finite reservoir-memory effects can enter through time-dependent dissipative and reservoir-induced coherent contributions. The resulting dynamics is then recast in Bloch-vector form to construct the stroke-resolved cycle dynamics. At fixed auto-spectral densities, cross-spectral correlations modify the populations and coherences of the working medium and thereby its thermodynamic performance. Increasing the correlation strength can enhance the output power, with the enhancement controlled by the cross-spectral phase and characteristic frequency scale. The correlations also reshape the transient cycle-to-cycle evolution and the approach to periodic operation, while the limit-cycle efficiency remains fixed at the Otto value for the population-preserving unitary strokes considered here. These results establish off-diagonal reservoir spectra as an additional resource for controlling finite-time quantum thermal machines.
We investigate the thermodynamic consequences of longitudinal-transverse cross-spectral reservoir correlations in a finite-time quantum Otto engine with a two-level working medium. Each reservoir couples through excitation-relaxation and dephasing channels whose fluctuations are characterized by a Hermitian positive-semidefinite spectral-density matrix, with the off-diagonal elements encoding their cross correlations. The finite-time isochoric dynamics is derived within the second-order time-convolutionless framework, without imposing the Markov limit at the outset, so that finite reservoir-memory effects can enter through time-dependent dissipative and reservoir-induced coherent contributions. The resulting dynamics is then recast in Bloch-vector form to construct the stroke-resolved cycle dynamics. At fixed auto-spectral densities, cross-spectral correlations modify the populations and coherences of the working medium and thereby its thermodynamic performance. Increasing the correlation strength can enhance the output power, with the enhancement controlled by the cross-spectral phase and characteristic frequency scale. The correlations also reshape the transient cycle-to-cycle evolution and the approach to periodic operation, while the limit-cycle efficiency remains fixed at the Otto value for the population-preserving unitary strokes considered here. These results establish off-diagonal reservoir spectra as an additional resource for controlling finite-time quantum thermal machines.
We consider a finite-time quantum Otto heat engine that consists of two isochoric (thermal-contact) process, where the system is alternatively coupled to a hot squeezed and a cold thermal reservoir, and two unitary driven strokes, where the system is isolated from these two baths and its von Neumann entropy keeps constant. Both quantum inner friction and coherence are generated along the driven stroke and coherence cannot be fully erased after the finite-time hot isochore. Using full counting statistics, we present the probability distribution functions of heat injection and total work per cycle, which are dependent on the time duration along each process. With these, we derive the analytical expressions for the thermodynamic quantities of the two-level heat engine, such as total work, thermodynamic efficiency, entropy production, and work fluctuations, in which effects of coherence, squeezing, inner friction and finite-time heat exchange are included. We then numerically determine the thermodynamic quantities and the fluctuations using the parameters employed in the experimental implementation. Our results clarify the role of coherence and squeezing in the performance and fluctuations in the quantum Otto engines.
Abstract This paper proposes a theoretical model for a heat engine operating on the Otto cycle, employing a two-qubit Heisenberg chain as its working substance. This system is subjected to an external, time-dependent homogeneous magnetic field and a symmetric cross-spin interaction. The interaction is configured to occur along two distinct orientations, contingent upon the direction of Zeeman energy and symmetric interaction: either exclusively along the X -direction or exclusively along the Z -direction. Furthermore, the thermal reservoirs integral to the Otto engine are considered to engage with the working substance via two discrete modes: a localized interaction or a collective interaction. The two qubits exhibit weak coupling to a non-equilibrium thermal environment during the isochoric heating and cooling strokes, thereby validating the application of a Markovian model as a suitable approximation for describing the time evolution of the working substance. This study investigates the influence of various system parameters on the thermodynamic quantities and the resultant power output. A principal finding is that refrigeration functionality is the predominant operational characteristic when the system engages in collective interaction with the reservoirs. Conversely, localized interactions facilitate dual operational modes, with the sign of the Zeeman energy determining the function as either a refrigerator or a heat engine. Significantly, positive power output is achieved in the engine regime, and we find that the choice of interaction axis acts as a powerful amplification mechanism for the thermodynamic output, while the system-environment coupling scheme proves to be the most decisive factor in determining the machine’s fundamental purpose.
The non-equilibrium properties of open quantum systems are determined by the microscopic laws governing energy exchange with their environment. In particular, an enhancement of the performance of quantum heat engines has been predicted by speeding up the dynamics through control of the system--bath interaction. However, direct microscopic control of heat transfer between the machine and the reservoir has remained elusive so far. Here, we experimentally demonstrate such control in a quantum Otto engine realized with ultracold Cs-133 atoms coupled to an atomic reservoir of ultracold Rb-87 atoms. Heat exchange between the two is mediated by inelastic s-wave collisions whose energy-dependent scattering cross sections lead to an asymmetric equilibration dynamics in the isochoric heating and cooling strokes. By tuning the kinetic temperature of the atomic reservoir, we modify the associated microscopic scattering rates, and thereby the heat transfer law, giving control over the time allocation within the engine cycle through control over the microscopic, multi-exponential relaxation dynamics. This enables power output optimization at fixed efficiency. Our results establish microscopic control of system-reservoir interactions as a tool for manipulating heat flow at the nanoscale and engineering the finite-time performance of quantum thermal machines.
Abstract We propose a quantum Otto heat engine using a finite-size Dicke-Stark model as the working substance. In the extended coherent state space, the complete energy spectrum and eigenstates are obtained through numerical calculations. Within the infinite-time and finite-time thermodynamics frameworks, we find that the output work, efficiency, and power can be optimized by adjusting the Stark field strength, the qubit–boson coupling strength, stroke times, and number of atoms. Our results reveal that output work and efficiency are maximized near the coupling strength at the superradiant phase transition (SPT). Tuning the Stark field strength modifies the energy level structure and SPT, effectively suppressing entropy generation and quantum friction during nonequilibrium evolution. We also show that asymmetric heat engines—where the two isochoric strokes operate with different Stark field strengths and durations—further improve engine performance. These results may guide future implementations of efficient quantum heat engines.
We investigate the thermodynamics and fluctuations of a finite-time quantum Otto engine alter- natively driven by a hot-squeezed and a cold thermal reservoir. We show that reservoir squeezing significantly enhances the performance by increasing the thermodynamic efficiency and the power and enables higher stability by decreasing the relative power fluctuations and speeding up the convergence of quantum efficiency to its most probable value. We also demonstrate the counterintuitive result that the efficiency can be larger than the Otto limit in the finite-time operation. Experimental demonstration of this quantum heat engine can be available, based on a single-electron spin pertaining to a trapped 40Ca+ ion [D. von Lindenfels et al., Phys. Rev. Lett. 123, 080602 (2019)]. We provide a general framework for reliably studying the finite-time nanoengine in finite-time operation which accounts for quantum friction and coherence, deriving important insights into the thermodynamic behaviors beyond the classical thermal machines.
Population inversion and collective relaxation can both enhance the performance of a quantum heat engine, but through distinct mechanisms. We study a quantum Otto engine whose working medium is a symmetric collective spin of N two-level constituents. For commuting work strokes and collective reservoir coupling, the dynamics reduces exactly to a finite birth--death process on the Dicke ladder, allowing a unified treatment of stationary operation, work fluctuations, and finite-time relaxation. In the complete-reset limit, passive work per cycle saturates with system size, whereas population inversion yields work that grows linearly with N. The work reliability shows the same linear scaling, exceeding the square-root behavior of N independent engines. This enhancement originates from a macroscopic polarization displacement between hot and cold states, while collective coupling instead accelerates the finite-time dynamics through Dicke transition rates. For matched passive and inverted hot states, the extra gross work equals the Otto efficiency times the ergotropy of the inverted state. Charging the corresponding reversible excess state-formation cost removes this advantage, showing that the enhanced output converts a pre-existing active-state resource rather than generating a free thermodynamic gain. Exact finite-contact trajectory statistics further quantify how collective kinetics, fluctuations, correlations, and resource accounting remain linked away from complete reset.