Accessing the thermodynamic cost of information in a nano-electromechanical resonator

A piston coupled to a working fluid remains a quintessential example for understanding the laws of thermodynamics. Thermodynamics itself is undergoing a transformation with the emergence of nanoscale and quantum devices, where fluctuations and dissipation play a key role and require a departure from classical description. Here we explore a single electron coupled to a mechanical resonator as a nanoscale working fluid and a piston respectively. We use the back action of the single electron dynamics on the mechanical motion as a possible realisation of an information engine. This system provides a pathway to study the thermodynamic cost of quantum information processing.