Incompatibility between Carnot efficiency and finite power in Markovian dynamics

Understand

In Markovian dynamics with the local detailed balance condition, we decompose the total entropy production rate into microscopic transitions.

• By applying this decomposition to the heat to work conversion process, we rigorously show that the Carnot efficiency implies zero power for any heat engine, even with broken time-reversal symmetry beyond the linear response regime.
• Moreover, we propose a trade-off relationship between the entropy production rate and the heat flow between the system and bath.