I have this Apple Thunderbolt display.
it works fine with my Macbook Pro. I also want to connect it to my Windows laptop via HDMI. I bought this converter, which converts the HDMI signal to DisplayPort. Everything plugs in just fine, but the display just does not turn on. I tried a variety of resolution settings.
Note: this display does not have a power button. It just turns on when I plug it into a Mac. There is no activity when I plug it into the DisplayPort converter.
Best Answer
If the Wikipedia article is to be believed (and I do believe it is correct based on what Thunderbolt is), then your configuration will not work.
Thunderbolt is not the same as Display Port. Therefore you can only connect thunderbolt equipped Mac's (or some PC's with thunderbolt hardware and appropriate drivers) to the Thunderbolt display.
From the Apple Mini DisplayPort FAQ
So with your adaptor, you can drive a DisplayPort based monitor to your PC, but not a thunderbolt display as it lacks support for DisplayPort. That's why it didn't turn on and work.
Some Googling and I haven't yet been able to find a USB based thunderbolt adaptor, it seems there is talk of such a device using USB 3.0 to Thunderbolt although at reduced speeds. There are a few thunderbolt PCIe cards available and some PC motherboards support thunderbolt.