Experimental realization of a minimal microscopic heat engine

Aykut Argun, Jalpa Soni, Lennart Dabelow, Stefano Bo, Giuseppe Pesce, Ralf Eichhorn, and Giovanni Volpe
Phys. Rev. E 96, 052106 – Published 6 November 2017

Abstract

Microscopic heat engines are microscale systems that convert energy flows between heat reservoirs into work or systematic motion. We have experimentally realized a minimal microscopic heat engine. It consists of a colloidal Brownian particle optically trapped in an elliptical potential well and simultaneously coupled to two heat baths at different temperatures acting along perpendicular directions. For a generic arrangement of the principal directions of the baths and the potential, the symmetry of the system is broken, such that the heat flow drives a systematic gyrating motion of the particle around the potential minimum. Using the experimentally measured trajectories, we quantify the gyrating motion of the particle, the resulting torque that it exerts on the potential, and the associated heat flow between the heat baths. We find excellent agreement between the experimental results and the theoretical predictions.

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  • Received 6 September 2017

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevE.96.052106

©2017 American Physical Society

Physics Subject Headings (PhySH)

Polymers & Soft Matter

Authors & Affiliations

Aykut Argun1, Jalpa Soni1, Lennart Dabelow2, Stefano Bo3, Giuseppe Pesce4, Ralf Eichhorn3, and Giovanni Volpe1

  • 1Department of Physics, University of Gothenburg, SE-41296 Gothenburg, Sweden
  • 2Theoretisch-Physikalisches Institut, Friedrich Schiller University Jena, Max-Wien-Platz 1, 07743 Jena, Germany
  • 3Nordita, Royal Institute of Technology and Stockholm University, SE-10691 Stockholm, Sweden
  • 4Department of Physics E. Pancini, University of Naples Federico II, via Cintia, 80126-I, Naples, Italy

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Issue

Vol. 96, Iss. 5 — November 2017

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