Bosonic Szilard Engine Assisted by Feshbach Resonances

TL;DR

This paper demonstrates that by controlling interaction strength via Feshbach resonances, a bosonic Szilard engine can achieve maximum theoretical work output, fully converting information into work in a reversible cycle.

Contribution

It introduces a method to make the barrier removal process fully reversible in a bosonic Szilard engine by changing interaction strength, enabling maximum work extraction.

Findings

Full information-to-work conversion is achievable with interaction strength control.

Reversible barrier removal allows reaching the thermodynamic maximum work output.

Experimental verification is feasible with ultra-cold atoms using Feshbach resonances.

Abstract

It was recently found that the information-to-work conversion in a quantum Szilard engine can be increased by using a working medium of bosons with attractive interactions. In the original scheme, the work output depends on the insertion and removal position of an impenetrable barrier that acts like a piston, separating the chambers of the engine. Here, we show that the barrier removal process can be made fully reversible, resulting in a full information-to-work conversion if we also allow for the interaction strength to change during the cycle. Hence, it becomes possible to reach the maximum work output per cycle dictated by the second law of thermodynamics. These findings can, for instance, be experimentally verified with ultra-cold atoms as a working medium, where a change of interaction strength can be controlled by Feshbach resonances.