Moving quantum baths: From black holes to dry friction

We describe the dynamics of a quantum field coupled to a moving heat bath in the formalism 
of the Markovian master equation for the field as an open quantum system.  This can be easily 
applied to the superradiance of a rotating black hole, an exercise that provides us with 
a useful paradigm for describing irreversible active processes in quantum thermodynamics.  
Fermions can't superradiate, but work may be extracted from active fermionic states in 
the presence of two baths with different chemical potentials.  We argue that this may explain 
the triboelectric effect (the charging of rough surfaces by rubbing, a phenomenon known 
since antiquity but which has never been explained microscopically).  We also apply this 
formalism to shock waves, fleshing out Zel'dovich's intuition that in this case 
"quantum mechanics helps understand classical mechanics".  Finally, we argue that this approach 
may throw light on the dynamics of other irreversible processes in astrophysics.