Performance Evaluation of a Micro-/Nanoscaled Quantum Ericsson Refrigeration Cycle

Abstract

The performance of a micro-/nanoscaled Ericsson refrigeration cycle using an ideal Fermi gas as the working substance is examined in which the finite size of the working substance is taken into account. It is found that finite-size effect always results in a decrease in the coefficient of performance compared with that obtained under the thermodynamic limit condition. The influence of the finite-size effect on the performance characteristics is observable when the refrigeration cycle is operated in the temperature region around the Fermi temperature T_F of the working substance but negligible when the working temperatures are much lower or higher than T_F . The results obtained here may be helpful for further understanding quantum boundary effect of small systems and provide theoretical guidance for designing a micro-/nanoscaled cycle device.

Keywords:

• Ericsson quantum cycle
• finite-size effect
• coefficient of performance
• Fermi temperature

Acknowledgments

This work was supported by the National Natural Science Foundation (No. 11175148), Specialized Research Fund for the Doctoral Program of Higher Education (No. 20100121110024), and the Natural Science Foundation of Fujian Province (No. A1010016), People's Republic of China.