Brownian ratchets

A form of Brownian ratchet — An apparent perpetual motion machine, the subject of a thought experiment, that would consist of a tiny paddle wheel and a ratchet, and might seem to be able to extract useful work from random fluctuations (heat) in a system at thermal equilibrium, in violation of the second law of thermodynamics.

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Meanings

noun
  1. pluralplural of Brownian ratchet
Cite this entry
APA

Brownian ratchets. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 5, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Brownian%20ratchets

MLA

“Brownian ratchets.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Brownian%20ratchets. Accessed November 5, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “Brownian ratchets,” accessed November 5, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Brownian%20ratchets.

Source: Brownian ratchets on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.