TY - JOUR T1 - An autonomous single-piston engine with a quantum rotor Y1 - 2018 A1 - Alexandre Roulet A1 - Stefan Nimmrichter A1 - J. M. Taylor AB -

Pistons are elementary components of a wide variety of thermal engines, converting input fuel into rotational motion. Here, we propose a single-piston engine where the rotational degree of freedom is effectively realized by the flux of a superconducting island -- a quantum rotor -- while the working volume corresponds to the effective length of a superconducting resonator. Our autonomous design implements a Carnot cycle, relies solely on standard thermal baths and can be implemented with circuit quantum electrodynamics. We demonstrate how the piston is able to extract a net positive work via its built-in synchronicity using a filter cavity as an effective valve, eliminating the need for external control.

UR - https://arxiv.org/abs/1802.05486 U5 - https://doi.org/10.1088/2058-9565/aac40d ER -