Circuits of thermodynamic devices in stationary non-equilibrium

Abstract

We introduce a non-linear theory of thermodynamic circuits in non-equilibrium stationary states. The non-equilibrium conductance matrix of a composite device is obtained from the ones of its sub-devices. This generalizes to thermodynamic devices the concept of equivalent impedance defined in electronics. An abstract example and the serial connection of two thermoelectric generators (TEG) with constant thermoelectric coefficients are considered. Interestingly, a current-dependent electrical resistance emerges from this connection.Comment: 5 pages, 3 figure