Energy transfer in networks with local magnetic time-reversal symmetry breaking

TL;DR

This paper investigates how breaking local magnetic time-reversal symmetry in oscillator networks enables mono-directional energy transfer, potentially surpassing traditional efficiency limits and revealing new transport mechanisms.

Contribution

It introduces novel mechanisms for mono-directional energy transfer in linear oscillator networks with local magnetic symmetry breaking.

Findings

Mono-directional transport can be achieved in linear networks.

Efficiency at maximum power can exceed 1/2 and approach 1.

New rules for energy transfer in symmetry-broken systems.

Abstract

Time-reversal symmetry of most conservative forces constrains the properties of linear transport in most physical systems. Here, I study the efficiency of energy transfer in oscillator networks where time-reversal symmetry is broken locally by Lorentz-force-like couplings. Despite their linearity, such networks can exhibit mono-directional transport and allow to isolate energy transfer in subsystems. New mechanisms and general rules for mono-directional transport are discussed. It is shown that the efficiency at maximum power can exceed $1/2$ and may even approach the upper bound of unity.