Quantum dot heat engine works without moving parts

False colour SEM of the Quantum-dot heat engine device

Source: © 2018, Springer Nature

Similar systems could be used to generate electricity from waste heat in solar cells

A quantum dot-based heat engine that, despite having none of the moving parts of the classical heat engine, converts heat into work with similar efficiency has been demonstrated by researchers in Sweden. The device could potentially prove useful for nanotechnology and various other applications.