Non-equilibrium quantum Langevin dynamics of orbital diamagnetic moment

Abstract

We investigate the time dependent orbital diamagnetic moment of a charged particle in a magnetic field in a viscous medium via the quantum Langevin equation. We study how the interplay between the cyclotron frequency and the viscous damping rate governs the dynamics of the orbital magnetic moment in the high temperature classical domain and the low temperature quantum domain for an Ohmic bath. These predictions can be tested via state of the art cold atom experiments with hybrid traps for ions and neutral atoms. We also study the effect of a confining potential on the dynamics of the magnetic moment. We notice that the rate of approach of the diamagnetic moment to the Bohr–van Leeuwen limit is higher in the presence of a potential compared to a situation where there is no confinement. We obtain the expected Bohr–van Leeuwen limit in the high temperature, asymptotic time (, where is the viscous damping coefficient) limit.