Heat bounds and the blowtorch theorem

TL;DR

This paper establishes optimal heat bounds on state occupations in driven nonequilibrium systems, clarifies Landauer's blowtorch theorem, and introduces a Freidlin-Wentzel analysis for low-temperature behavior in Markov jump processes.

Contribution

It provides a rigorous formulation of heat bounds on occupations, refines the understanding of kinetic effects on nonequilibrium states, and develops a low-temperature analysis framework.

Findings

Optimal bounds on relative occupations based on heat release

Kinetic effects significantly modify nonequilibrium occupations

Dominant states characterized by heat and escape rates at low temperatures

Abstract

We study driven systems with possible population inversion and we give optimal bounds on the relative occupations in terms of released heat. A precise meaning to Landauer's blowtorch theorem (1975) is obtained stating that nonequilibrium occupations are essentially modified by kinetic effects. Towards very low temperatures we apply a Freidlin-Wentzel type analysis for continuous time Markov jump processes. It leads to a definition of dominant states in terms of both heat and escape rates.