Quantum power boost in a nonstationary cavity-QED quantum heat engine

Abstract

We show a quantum boost in the output power of a heat engine formed by a two-level system coherently coupled to a single-mode cavity. The key ingredient here is the use of nonstationary cavity-QED regimes (red-sideband transition or antidynamical Casimir effect), achieved when some system parameter (atomic transition frequency, in our case) is subjected to a time-dependent perturbative modulation that is precisely tuned at certain frequencies. We discuss how the extracted power can lead to amplification of the external driving field. Quantum power boost is found both in the nonstationary Jaynes–Cummings and Rabi models, indicating that our predictions can be experimentally tested in circuit quantum electrodynamics setups.