Researchers have made a breakthrough in applying the first law of thermodynamics to complex systems. The law is a bedrock of physics, but has long failed to describe systems that are out of ...

"Hearst Magazines and Yahoo may earn commission or revenue on some items through these links." The Laws of Thermodynamics explain interactions among components in a system, including emulsification of ...

Just over 200 years after French engineer and physicist Sadi Carnot formulated the second law of thermodynamics, an international team of researchers has unveiled an analogous law for the quantum ...

Almost exactly 200 years ago, French physicist Sadi Carnot determined the maximum efficiency of heat engines. The Carnot ...

Thanks to the power of fluctuation relations, physicists are taking the second law of thermodynamics to settings once thought impossible. Since the steam engine began modernizing the world, the second ...

Quantum thermodynamics explores the fundamental principles governing energy conversion at the smallest scales, where quantum effects such as coherence and entanglement significantly influence the ...