The 2nd law of thermodynamics may be violated in the quantum world, Scientists – YOUR CITY Pskov

the Law of non-decreasing entropy in closed systems, which is one of the popular formulations of the 2nd law of thermodynamics can be violated, said the pr-service of the Moscow physical – technical Institute.

Explaining what this means in essence, Gordey Lesovik from the Moscow physical-technical Institute resorts to the image of Cinderella, whose stepmother makes disassemble mixed lentils and peas. This can occur in quantum systems is relatively small, but macroscopic size — centimeters and even meters. “We can “clean up” state due to quantum effects,” explains Gordey Lesovik from the Moscow Institute of physics and technology in Dolgoprudnyy, quoted in pr-service of MIPT. In other words, we move through four-dimensional space only in one direction along the time axis, and “rewind” time back is impossible. For example, this process is manifested in the fact how the state of energy of the Universe.

an international group of researchers including the staff of the MIPT and the RAS suggested that in the quantum world, this law can be violated and entropy can decrease in a quantum system. This principle, which scientists often call the “second law of thermodynamics”, is considered inviolable rule governing the life of the whole Universe at all levels. In quantum information theory have been obtained the main results describing the conditions under which the entropy of the system does not decrease.

In 1870-ies the principle of growth of entropy (disorder) was formulated by Ludwig Boltzmann in his so-called H-theorem, it says that the entropy in a closed system either increases or remains constant.

a group under the control of the man for the first time formulated the H-theorem in the language of quantum physics, and for several years tried to find her evidence. Every time scientists thought they handled the evidence of the H-theorem, they found a new “hole” in their own calculations that ultimately convinced the researchers that the entropy may not only remain at the previous level or rise, but decrease. Such action represents a decrease in entropy in the system, so the “classic Cinderella in an isolated system” with the task of coping would, “quantum” could. As it turned out, something similar may happen at the moment, if you put a charged particle in a hallway with 2 outputs from it, each of which includes a source of magnetic field which interacts with the spin of the particle. Within the framework of traditional physics to substantiate this theory still failed, but scientists have suggested that it may be true from the point of view o f quantum physics.

According to his idea for a creature, later called “Maxwell’s demon” who was guarding the door between the 2 rooms. Maxwell’s demon passed through the door between the rooms, only the “fast” molecules, leaving the threshold of “slow”. In the end, all the “fast” molecules were in one room, slow in the other, the temperature difference could be used for practical purposes.

According to Forrester, the researchers soon plan to conduct experimental verification of this effect. This experiment opens the possibility of creating quantum refrigerators and motors updated type.