Demonstration of energy extraction gain from non-classical correlations

TL;DR

This paper experimentally demonstrates that non-classical correlations, such as entanglement, can be harnessed as a resource for energy extraction in quantum thermodynamics, using a feedback protocol with trapped ions.

Contribution

It provides the first experimental validation of the link between quantum correlations and energy extraction efficiency in a controlled setting.

Findings

Entanglement correlates with increased energy extraction gain.

Feedback policies optimize energy harvesting from quantum correlations.

Quantum state tomography quantifies the resource correlations.

Abstract

Within the framework of microscopic thermodynamics, correlations can play a crucial role for energy extraction. Our work sheds light on this connection by demonstrating that entanglement governs the amount of extractable energy in a controllable setting. We experimentally investigate a fundamental link between information, encoded in tunable non-classical correlations and quantified by quantum state tomography, and its utility as fuel for energy extraction. We realize an agent-demon protocol involving two trapped-ion qubits, and show that by implementing an appropriate feedback policy, the demon can optimize the energy extraction process, capitalizing on the correlations between the system's constituents. By quantifying both the concurrence of the two-qubit resource state and the energy extraction gain from applying the feedback policy, we corroborate the connection between information and energy, solidifying the role of non-classical correlations as a resource for thermodynamic processes.