Quantum coherence rather than quantum correlations reflect the effects of reservoir on the system's work capability

TL;DR

This paper demonstrates that the coherence of a nonequilibrium reservoir, rather than quantum correlations, primarily influences the work capability of an optical cavity system, with phase adjustments affecting this coherence.

Contribution

It reveals that reservoir coherence, not quantum correlations, determines the system's work potential, highlighting the importance of coherence in quantum thermodynamics.

Findings

Reservoir coherence affects the cavity's work capability.

Quantum correlations do not influence the work capability.

Phase adjustments can modulate the effects of coherence.

Abstract

We consider a model of an optical cavity with a nonequilibrium reservoir consisting of a beam of identical two-level atom pairs (TLAPs) in the general X-state. We find that coherence of multiparticle nonequilibrium reservoir plays a central role on the potential work capability of cavity. We show that no matter whether there are quantum correlations in each TLAP (including quantum entanglement and quantum discord) or not the coherence of the TLAPs has an effect on the work capability of the cavity. Additionally, constructive and destructive interferences could be induced to influence the work capability of cavity only by adjusting the relative phase with which quantum correlations have nothing to do. In this paper, the coherence of reservoir rather than the quantum correlations effectively reflecting the effects of reservoir on the system's work capability is demonstrated clearly.