Identifying optimal cycles in quantum thermal machines with reinforcement-learning

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2022
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Springer Nature
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The optimal control of open quantum systems is a challenging task but has a key role in improving existing quantum information processing technologies. We introduce a general framework based on reinforcement learning to discover optimal thermodynamic cycles that maximize the power of out-of-equilibrium quantum heat engines and refrigerators. We apply our method, based on the soft actor-critic algorithm, to three systems: a benchmark two-level system heat engine, where we find the optimal known cycle; an experimentally realistic refrigerator based on a superconducting qubit that generates coherence, where we find a non-intuitive control sequence that outperforms previous cycles proposed in literature; a heat engine based on a quantum harmonic oscillator, where we find a cycle with an elaborate structure that outperforms the optimized Otto cycle. We then evaluate the corresponding efficiency at maximum power.

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Erdman, Paolo A. and NoƩ, Frank. "Identifying optimal cycles in quantum thermal machines with reinforcement-learning." npj Quantum Information, 8, (2022) Springer Nature: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41534-021-00512-0.

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