日本科学家公布了一款无视能量损耗的量子电池

Scientists from the RIKEN Center for Quantum Computing and Huazhong University of Science and Technology have carried out a theoretical study showing how a "topological quantum battery" could be efficiently designed. This innovative concept uses the topological characteristics of photonic waveguides and the quantum behavior of two-level atoms to store and transfer energy. Their findings, published in Physical Review Letters, point toward potential applications in nanoscale energy storage, optical quantum communication, and distributed quantum computing systems.
来自RIKEN量子计算中心和华中科技大学的科学家们进行了一项理论研究，展示了如何高效设计一种“拓扑量子电池”。这一创新概念利用光子波导的拓扑特性与二能级原子的量子行为来存储和传输能量。他们的研究成果发表于《Physical Review Letters》，预示着该技术在纳米级能量存储、光学量子通信及分布式量子计算系统中的潜在应用。

The Promise of Quantum Batteries
量子电池的承诺

As environmental sustainability becomes an increasingly urgent global concern, researchers are looking for new approaches to next-generation energy storage. Quantum batteries -- miniaturized theoretical devices that store energy using quantum phenomena such as superposition, entanglement, and coherence rather than traditional chemical reactions -- could redefine how power is stored and transferred. In principle, these batteries could deliver several advantages over conventional ones, including faster charging, higher capacity, and improved efficiency in energy extraction.
随着环境可持续性成为日益紧迫的全球议题，研究人员正在寻求新一代储能技术的新方案。量子电池——这种利用叠加、纠缠和相干性等量子现象（而非传统化学反应）储存能量的微型化理论装置——可能重新定义能量的存储与传输方式。理论上，这类电池相较传统电池具备多项优势，包括更快的充电速度、更高的容量以及更高效的能量提取。

Overcoming the Challenges of Quantum Energy Systems
克服量子能源系统的挑战

Despite years of proposals, practical implementation of quantum batteries has remained out of reach. In real-world conditions, these systems are particularly vulnerable to energy loss and decoherence, a process in which quantum systems lose essential properties like entanglement and superposition, leading to reduced performance. In photonic systems that use ordinary (non-topological) waveguides -- channels that direct photons but are sensitive to bends or imperfections -- energy efficiency drops sharply as photons disperse within the guide. Additional challenges such as environmental noise, dissipation, and structural disorder further erode stability and storage efficiency.
尽管多年来提案不断，量子电池的实际应用仍遥不可及。在现实条件下，这些系统尤其容易遭受能量损失和退相干的影响——退相干是指量子系统丧失纠缠与叠加等关键特性，导致性能下降的过程。在使用普通（非拓扑）波导（即引导光子但对弯曲或缺陷敏感的光通道）的光子系统中，当光子在导体内扩散时，能量效率会急剧Drop。环境噪声、能量耗散和结构紊乱等额外挑战进一步削弱了稳定性和存储效率。

Harnessing Topology to Improve Battery Performance
利用拓扑结构提升电池性能

To address these persistent problems, the international research team used analytical and numerical modeling within a theoretical framework. By taking advantage of topological properties -- material features that remain unchanged even when the structure is twisted or bent -- they showed it is possible to achieve both long-distance energy transfer and immunity to dissipation in quantum batteries. In an unexpected twist, the researchers also discovered that dissipation, which typically weakens performance, can temporarily increase charging power under certain conditions.
为了解决这些长期存在的问题，国际研究团队在理论框架内运用了分析与数值建模方法。通过利用拓扑特性（即材料在结构扭曲或弯曲时仍保持不变的特征），他们证明了量子电池既能实现远距离能量传输，又能免受耗散影响。令人意外的是，研究人员还发现通常削弱性能的耗散现象，在特定条件下反而能暂时提升充电功率。

Breakthrough Findings and Future Implications
突破性发现与未来影响

The study revealed several promising outcomes that bring topological quantum batteries closer to practical use. The team demonstrated that the topological nature of photonic waveguides enables nearly perfect energy transfer. When the charging source and battery occupy the same site, the system gains dissipation immunity limited to a single sublattice. They also found that when dissipation surpasses a critical level, charging power experiences a brief but significant boost, overturning the long-held assumption that energy loss is always detrimental.
研究揭示了几项有望推动拓扑量子电池走向实用的成果。团队证明光子波导的拓扑特性可实现近乎完美的能量传输。当充电源与电池处于同一位置时，系统可获得仅限单个子晶格的耗散免疫性。他们还发现，当耗散超过临界值时，充电功率会出现短暂但显著的提升，这推翻了能量损耗必然有害的长期假设。

Toward Real-World Quantum Batteries
迈向现实世界的量子平行宇宙任务

"Our research provides new insights from a topological perspective and gives us hints toward the realization of high-performance micro-energy storage devices. By overcoming the practical performance limitations of quantum batteries caused by long-distance energy transmission and dissipation, we hope to accelerate the transition from theory to practical application of quantum batteries," said Zhi-Guang Lu, the first author of the study.
“我们的研究从拓扑学角度提供了新的见解，并为我们实现高性能微能量存储设备提供了线索。通过克服量子电池因远距离能量传输和耗散导致的实际性能限制，我们希望加速量子电池从理论到实际应用的转变，”该研究的第一作者Zhi-Guang Lu表示。

"Looking ahead," says Cheng Shang, the corresponding author of the international research team, "we will continue working to bridge the gap between theoretical study and the practical deployment of quantum devices -- ushering in the quantum era we have long envisioned."
国际研究团队的通讯作者程尚表示："展望未来，我们将继续努力缩小量子理论研究和量子设备实际部署之间的差距——迎接我们期待已久的量子时代。"