Overview
Imagine a battery that can discharge more power than it stores, defying traditional energy limits. Sounds impossible, right? Welcome to the world of quantum batteries, where correlations and entanglement hold the key to unlocking hidden potential.
What is the Quantum Battery?
The quantum phase battery is fundamentally different from a traditional battery. While classical batteries convert chemical energy into voltage to power electronic devices, quantum batteries work based on the principles of quantum mechanics, particularly entanglement.
They have shown that theoretically, a quantum battery, which is essentially a quantum system like a qubit holding energy in its quantum states, would charge much faster than the standard battery. This “quantum speedup” is due to the entanglement of multiple qubits that seems to create an entanglement shortcut between their uncharged and charged states, and so allows the charging to happen much faster.
The scientists tested a quantum battery consisting of qubits, where qubits are able to appear in a multitude of physical shapes, including ions, neutral atoms, and photons. Qubits can exist either in one state or in both states at once, being a superposition. In the quantum battery case, these two states represent two levels of energy. Charging the battery is essentially transferring a qubit from a lower energy state to a higher one, while the reverse process discharges the battery. The scientists call these specific qubits “work qubits” or “wits,” as they store energy for future use.
Although this explanation echoes the working of a typical battery, the point of difference in this case lies in the nature of qubits as quantum entities. Qubits can be entangled, such that the qubits are linked so closely that an entire collection of qubits can be accounted for by one quantum state.
The Quantum Advantage
Researchers have discovered that specially correlated quantum batteries can transfer more ergotropy (useful work) to devices than they possess. This breakthrough has the potential to revolutionize energy storage, especially for devices like quantum sensors and quantum computers.
This is a concept of the quantum battery discovered by researchers at the University of Alberta and the University of Toronto. The new battery is several nanometers in size. Once this battery is charged, it should be able to power your smartphone almost indefinitely.
This could, theoretically mean your smartphone would be powered indefinitely, regardless of duration or intensity of usage. Never to be plugged in again.
However, still skeptical is the theory due to the principle of entropy which revolves around the change of state of energy and the wastage of energy through friction between molecules, a process that cannot be reversed. That sort of dissipative energy pits the possibility of such a battery.
Just like perpetual motion machines, it is impossible to create an infinite battery using our current technological capabilities.
How Does it Work?
Quantum batteries don’t become correlated simply by being connected. Instead, they must start in a special shared quantum state, like quantum entanglement, which guarantees that their quantum states change together during charging. This correlation enables the device to gain more charge than the battery loses.
The Science Behind
Karen Hovhannisyan at the University of Potsdam in Germany explains, “If (a battery and a device) have some information about each other, if they are correlated, then sometimes your device will be able to get more than the battery gives“.
Through mathematical analysis and computer simulations, Hovhannisyan and colleagues modeled the battery and device as quantum bits. They compared ergotropy exchange between correlated and independent states, proving that correlations are invaluable for quantum batteries.
You Like to Read: Teaching Quantum Mechanics In Secondary And Lower Undergraduate Education
Breaking Energy Barriers
Traditional batteries can give off almost all their charge, but quantum batteries often lose ergotropy during transfer. However, by harnessing correlations, quantum batteries can overcome this limitation, effectively transforming a AAA battery into a more powerful AA battery.
Implications and Future Directions
Pharnam Bakhshinezhad at the Vienna University of Technology notes, “For every operation, it’s crucial to know what correlations make the process more efficient and how much energy is required to establish those correlations.”
As researchers continue to explore quantum batteries, we may uncover new applications and optimizations. The potential for enhanced energy storage and transfer efficiency could revolutionize various fields, from quantum computing to medical devices.
Quantum batteries have the potential to redefine energy storage limits. By leveraging correlations and entanglement, these innovative batteries can unlock hidden power, paving the way for breakthroughs in quantum technology.
 “Everything that comes together falls apart. Everything. The chair I’m sitting on. It was built, and so it will fall apart. I’m going to fall apart, probably before this chair. And you’re going to fall apart. The cells and organs and systems that make you they came together, grew together, and so must fall apart. The Buddha knew one thing science didn’t prove for millennia after his death: Entropy increases. Things fall apart.” By John Green, Looking for Alaska.