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Thermostatistical description of small systems in nonequilibrium conditions: Energy conversion and harvesting

# metadata.dc.description.abstract[].value
Hysteresis cycles are very important features of energy conversion and harvesting devices, such as batteries. The efﬁciency of these may be strongly affected by the physical size of the system. Here, we show that in systems which are small enough, the existence of physical boundaries which produce nonhomogeneities of the interaction potential gives rise to inﬂections and barriers in the associated free energy. This in turn brings on irreversible processes which can be triggered under suitable external conditions imposed by a heat bath. As an example, by controlling the temperature, the state of a small system may be impelled to oscillate between two different structural conﬁgurations or aggregation states avoiding equilibrium coexistence and therefore dissipating energy. This cyclical behavior associated with a hysteresis cycle may be prototypical of energy conversion, storage, or generating nanodevices, as exempliﬁed by Li-ion insertion batteries.

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Articles publicats en revistes (Física de la Matèria Condensada)

# metadata.dc.title[].value
Thermostatistical description of small systems in nonequilibrium conditions: Energy conversion and harvesting