Beating the optical Liouville theorem: How does geometrical optics know the second law of thermodynamics?

Roland Winston; Chunhua Wang; Weiya Zhang

doi:10.1117/12.836029

28 August 2009 Beating the optical Liouville theorem: How does geometrical optics know the second law of thermodynamics?

Roland Winston, Chunhua Wang, Weiya Zhang

Author Affiliations +

Proceedings Volume 7423, Nonimaging Optics: Efficient Design for Illumination and Solar Concentration VI; 742309 (2009) https://doi.org/10.1117/12.836029
Event: SPIE Optical Engineering + Applications, 2009, San Diego, California, United States

Abstract

It is well-known that conservation of phase-space volume or optical etendue leads to strict limits to concentration. Less well- known is the connection between entropy and etendue. Entropy has a logarithmic dependence on etendue in addition to the familiar linear dependence on heat. This trade-off permits in principle an exponential boost in concentration. Optical systems that make use of this possibility will be discussed.

Citation Download Citation

Roland Winston, Chunhua Wang, and Weiya Zhang "Beating the optical Liouville theorem: How does geometrical optics know the second law of thermodynamics?", Proc. SPIE 7423, Nonimaging Optics: Efficient Design for Illumination and Solar Concentration VI, 742309 (28 August 2009); https://doi.org/10.1117/12.836029

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