Implementation of a two-stroke quantum heat engine with a collisional model

TL;DR

This paper demonstrates a quantum simulation of a two-stroke quantum heat engine on IBMQ, using a spin chain and variational thermalizer, highlighting IBMQ's potential for quantum thermodynamics research.

Contribution

It introduces a novel implementation of a quantum heat engine on a real quantum computer using variational thermalization and independent circuit design for heat and work strokes.

Findings

Good agreement with theoretical predictions

Shows IBMQ's capability for quantum thermodynamics studies

Enables simulation of quantum heat transport in various geometries

Abstract

We put forth a quantum simulation of a stroboscopic two-stroke thermal engine in the IBMQ processor. The system consists of a quantum spin chain connected to two baths at their boundaries, prepared at different temperatures using the variational quantum thermalizer algorithm. The dynamics alternates between heat and work strokes, which can be separately designed using independent quantum circuits. The results show good agreement with theoretical predictions, showcasing IBMQ as a powerful tool to study thermodynamics in the quantum regime, as well as the implementation of variational quantum algorithms in real-world quantum computers. It also opens the possibility of simulating quantum heat transport across a broad range of chain geometries and interactions.