Assistant Professor of Physics, University of Maryland, Baltimore County
Quantum thermodynamics is a newly emerging field of modern research, which has recently attracted more and more activity. Although classical thermodynamics and quantum mechanics were developed side by side in the beginning of the twentieth century the thermodynamic description of quantum systems has only recently become a major topic of modern research. This development has been spurred by the discovery of novel and fundamental generalizations of the second law of thermodynamics explicitly accounting for non-equilibrium fluctuations. These so-called fluctuation theorems changed the conventional focus of thermodynamics on work and heat to the study of entropy production -- a concept more accessible in quantum systems. To this end, three main avenues of research have been pursued: identifying fundamental notions of entropy and information production in quantum systems, studying the thermodynamics of information processing, and analyzing optimal quantum processes. As a theoretical physicist, I employ tools from Statistical Physics, Open Quantum Dynamics, Quantum Information Theory, Quantum Optics, Condensed Matter Theory and Optimal Control Theory to investigate the nonequilibrium properties of nanosystems operating far from thermal equilibrium.
Quantum speed limit may put brakes on quantum computers
Jan 12, 2018 05:52 am UTC| Insights & Views Technology
Over the past five decades, standard computer processors have gotten increasingly faster. In recent years, however, the limits to that technology have become clear: Chip components can only get so small, and be packed only...
Static electricity's tiny sparks
Jan 06, 2017 04:33 am UTC| Science
Static electricity is a ubiquitous part of everyday life. Its all around us, sometimes funny and obvious, as when it makes your hair stand on end, sometimes hidden and useful, as when harnessed by the electronics in your...
‘We have thousands of Modis’: the secret behind the BJP’s enduring success in India