Initial demonstration of a quantum heat engine based on dissipation-engineered superconducting circuits

Nature Communications, Published online: 05 May 2026; doi:10.1038/s41467-026-72651-x Recently, there has been growing interest in realizing quantum heat engines using superconducting circuits. Here the authors demonstrate a cyclic quantum heat engine based on superconducting circuits, showing controlled heating, cooling, and positive work extraction, with measured power and efficiency in agreement with thermodynamic simulations.