• Editors' Suggestion

Thermodynamic laws in isolated systems

Stefan Hilbert, Peter Hänggi, and Jörn Dunkel
Phys. Rev. E 90, 062116 – Published 9 December 2014

Abstract

The recent experimental realization of exotic matter states in isolated quantum systems and the ensuing controversy about the existence of negative absolute temperatures demand a careful analysis of the conceptual foundations underlying microcanonical thermostatistics. Here we provide a detailed comparison of the most commonly considered microcanonical entropy definitions, focusing specifically on whether they satisfy or violate the zeroth, first, and second laws of thermodynamics. Our analysis shows that, for a broad class of systems that includes all standard classical Hamiltonian systems, only the Gibbs volume entropy fulfills all three laws simultaneously. To avoid ambiguities, the discussion is restricted to exact results and analytically tractable examples.

  • Figure
  • Figure
  • Figure
  • Figure
  • Figure
  • Figure
  • Figure
1 More
  • Received 28 September 2014

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevE.90.062116

©2014 American Physical Society

Authors & Affiliations

Stefan Hilbert1,*, Peter Hänggi2,3, and Jörn Dunkel4

  • 1Exzellenzcluster Universe, Boltzmannstr. 2, D-85748 Garching, Germany
  • 2Institute of Physics, University of Augsburg, Universitätsstraße 1, D-86135 Augsburg, Germany
  • 3Nanosystems Initiative Munich, Schellingstr. 4, D-80799 München, Germany
  • 4Department of Mathematics, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, 77 Massachusetts Avenue E17-412, Cambridge, Massachusetts 02139-4307, USA

  • *stefan.hilbert@tum.de

Article Text (Subscription Required)

Click to Expand

References (Subscription Required)

Click to Expand
Issue

Vol. 90, Iss. 6 — December 2014

Reuse & Permissions
Access Options
Author publication services for translation and copyediting assistance advertisement

Authorization Required


×
×

Images

×

Sign up to receive regular email alerts from Physical Review E

Log In

Cancel
×

Search


Article Lookup

Paste a citation or DOI

Enter a citation
×