Driving a dissipative quantum oscillator

Abstract

The open driven quantum harmonic oscillator is studied for three different possible mechanisms of driving; a generalization of the forced oscillator, driving due to a time-dependent coupling to a two-level system, and driving due to an adiabatic modulation of the frequency. The first case encompasses all possible configurations going from the standard forced harmonic oscillator to the classical pumping type of driving typically used in quantum optics. In the second case, an additional two-level system, coupled to the oscillator at a time-varying rate, is assumed and the reduced dynamics of the oscillator and the qubit is examined. In the driving due to adiabatic modulation, the dynamics of a harmonic oscillator whose frequency slowly varies in time is studied. The study done in this paper is focused on a harmonic type of driving, although the solutions are derived for an arbitrary type of driving. In all the cases, the oscillator is assumed to be in contact with a zero- or finite-temperature environment, which provides dissipation to the system. The treatment done in this paper is fully analytic and the derivation of the solutions is based on the employment of the double Fourier transform of the Wigner function.