2014/12/31 by John P. S. Peterson, John P. P. Silva, R. S. Sarthour +8 · 5 citations
Computer Science · Physics and Astronomy · #Advanced Thermodynamics and Statistical Mechanics #Algorithm #Computer science #Condensed matter physics #Entropy (arrow of time) #Law #Physics #Quantum #Quantum Information and Cryptography #Quantum information #Quantum mechanics #Quantum system #Qubit #Spectroscopy and Quantum Chemical Studies #Spins #Statistical physics #Unitary state #quant-ph
paper · pdf · doi:10.1098/rspa.2015.0813
published as Proc. R. Soc. A 472, 20150813 (2016)
arxiv created 2016/03/14 · openalex publication_date 2016/04/01 · arxiv updated 2016/04/20 · openalex created_date 2025/10/10 · openalex updated_date 2026/08/05
Landauer's principle sets fundamental thermodynamical constraints for classical and quantum information processing, thus affecting not only various branches of physics, but also of computer science and engineering. Despite its importance, this principle was only recently experimentally considered for classical systems. Here we employ a nuclear magnetic resonance set-up to experimentally address the information to energy conversion in a quantum system. Specifically, we consider a three nuclear spins [Formula: see text] (qubits) molecule-the system, the reservoir and the ancilla-to measure the heat dissipated during the implementation of a global system-reservoir unitary interaction that changes the information content of the system. By employing an interferometric technique, we were able to reconstruct the heat distribution associated with the unitary interaction. Then, through quantum state tomography, we measured the relative change in the entropy of the system. In this way, we were able to verify that an operation that changes the information content of the system must necessarily generate heat in the reservoir, exactly as predicted by Landauer's principle. The scheme presented here allows for the detailed study of irreversible entropy production in quantum information processors.