Phys. Rev. Lett. 88, 050602 (2002) [4 pages]Quantum Afterburner: Improving the Efficiency of an Ideal Heat EngineReceived 7 February 2001; revised 20 November 2001; published 23 January 2002 By using a laser and maser in tandem, it is possible to obtain laser action in the hot exhaust gases of a heat engine. Such a “quantum afterburner” involves the internal quantum states of the working molecules as well as the techniques of cavity quantum electrodynamics and is therefore in the domain of quantum thermodynamics. It is shown that Otto cycle engine performance can be improved beyond that of the “ideal” Otto heat engine. Furthermore, the present work demonstrates a new kind of lasing without initial inversion. © 2002 The American Physical Society URL:
http://link.aps.org/doi/10.1103/PhysRevLett.88.050602
DOI:
10.1103/PhysRevLett.88.050602
PACS:
05.10.Gg, 05.40.-a, 42.50.-p
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