Two and three-state quantum heat engines with stochastic resetting

Abstract Quantum heat engines have undergone extensive studies over the last two decades. Simultaneously, the studies of the applications of stochastic resetting in various fields are on the rise. We explore the effect of stochastic resetting (applied in the isochoric steps) on the dynamics of a two-level and a three-level quantum Otto engine. The extracted work is shown to increase with the resetting rate. The effective efficiency, that takes into account the work done due to resetting, remains constant and equal to the Otto engine efficiency without resetting. However, if the work done due to resetting is ignored, then the system can incorrectly imply a different behavior, including the false inference that it is not working as an engine at all. The efficient power is observed to increase beyond that obtained in the absence of resetting, and is shown to be higher for a three-level engine.