Work and Efficiency of Quantum Otto Cycles in Power Law Trapping Potentials

摘要

We study the performance of a quantum Otto cycle driven by trappingpotentials of the form $V_t(x) \sim x^{2q}$. This family of potentialspossesses a simple scaling property which allows for analytical insights intothe efficiency and work output of the cycle. We show that, while both the meanwork output and the efficiency of two Otto cycles in different trappingpotentials can be made equal, the work probability distribution will still bestrongly affected by the difference in structure of the energy levels. Lastly,we perform a comparison of quantum Otto cycles in various physically relevantscenarios and find that in certain instances, the efficiency of the cycle isgreater when using potentials with larger values of $q$, while, in other cases,with harmonic traps.