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arXiv · 1206.5553

Work and information processing in a solvable model of Maxwell's demon

Dibyendu Mandal·Christopher Jarzynski
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Abstract

We describe a minimal model of an autonomous Maxwell demon, a device that delivers work by rectifying thermal fluctuations while simultaneously writing information to a memory register. We solve exactly for the steady-state behavior of our model, and we construct its phase diagram. We find that our device can also act as a "Landauer eraser", using externally supplied work to remove information from the memory register. By exposing an explicit, transparent mechanism of operation, our model offers a simple paradigm for investigating the thermodynamics of information processing by small systems.

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BibTeXRIS

Dibyendu Mandal, Christopher Jarzynski. 2012-06-25. Work and information processing in a solvable model of Maxwell's demon. https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.1204263109

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