Thermodynamics and Control of Open Quantum Systems

The control of open quantum systems and their associated quantum thermodynamic properties is a topic of growing importance in modern quantum physics and quantum chemistry research. This unique and self-contained book presents a unifying perspective of such open quantum systems, first describing the fundamental theory behind these formidably complex systems, before introducing the models and techniques that are employed to control their quantum thermodynamics processes. A detailed discussion of real quantum devices is also covered, including quantum heat engines and quantum refrigerators. The theory of open quantum systems is developed pedagogically, from first principles, and the book is accessible to graduate students and researchers working in atomic physics, quantum information, condensed matter physics, and quantum chemistry.

Gershon Kurizki has held the G.W. Dunne Professorial Chair in Theoretical Quantum Optics at the Weizmann Institute of Science in Israel since 1998. He was the recipient of the W.E. Lamb Medal in Laser Science and Quantum Optics (USA) in 2008 and the Humboldt-Meitner Award (Germany) in 2009 for pioneering contributions to the theory of quantum measurements and decoherence control in open quantum systems. A Fellow of the Optical Society of America, the American Physical Society and the UK Institute of Physics, he has co-authored more than 300 scientific publications.

Abraham G. Kofman is Research Consultant at the Weizmann Institute of Science. He was the recipient of the Maxine Singer Prize for Outstanding Research at the Weizmann Institute of Science in 2005, and received the 'Highlights of 2013' citation from the New Journal of Physics. He has coauthored more than 100 scientific publications related to various fields of theoretical physics and chemistry, including quantum optics, quantum measurements, quantum information processing, atomic and molecular physics, condensed matter and chemical reactions.