Nonequilibrium Quantum Systems Research Articles

Vibration multistability and quantum switching for dispersive coupling

We investigate a resonantly modulated harmonic mode, dispersively coupled to a nonequilibrium few-level quantum system. We focus on the regime where the relaxation rate of the system greatly exceeds that of the mode, and develop a quantum adiabatic approach for analyzing the dynamics. Semiclassically, the dispersive coupling leads to a mutual tuning of the mode and system into and out of resonance with their modulating fields, leading to multistability. In the important case where the system has two energy levels and is excited near resonance, the compound system can have up to three metastable states. Nonadiabatic quantum fluctuations associated with spontaneous transitions in the few-level system lead to switching between the metastable states. We provide parameter estimates for currently available systems.

Time-reversal symmetry and fluctuation relations in non-equilibrium quantum steady states

In this communication, we present a simple derivation, from time-reversal symmetry, of fluctuation relations for steady-state large deviation functions in non-equilibrium quantum systems. We further show that a condition of pure transmission implies extended fluctuation relations, connecting large deviation functions to mean currents at shifted temperatures and chemical potentials. We illustrate these concepts in various examples, including the interacting resonant level model and conformal or integrable models.

Bistability in a nonequilibrium quantum system with electron-phonon interactions

The existence of more than one steady state in a many-body quantum system driven out of equilibrium has been a matter of debate, both in the context of simple impurity models and in the case of inelastic tunneling channels. In this paper, we combine a reduced density matrix formalism with the multilayer multiconfiguration time-dependent Hartree method to address this problem. This allows us to obtain a converged numerical solution of the nonequilibrium dynamics. Considering a generic model for quantum transport through a quantum dot with electron-phonon interaction, we prove that a unique steady state exists regardless of the initial electronic preparation of the quantum dot, consistent with the converged numerical results. However, a bistability can be observed for different initial phonon preparations. The effects of the phonon frequency and strength of the electron-phonon couplings on the nonequilibrium dynamics and on the emergence of bistability is discussed.

Expanded Focus on Non-equilibrium Thermodynamics

The field of non-equilibrium thermodynamics is currently a subject of increasing interest. Several books on new developments and applications have appeared, providing a general thermodynamic basis for a multitude of rate processes. The classical theory has been recently extended to deal with transport through phase boundaries and to non-equilibrium quantum systems. Optimization of entropy production is important in chemical and mechanical engineering. Several lines of research are addressing the non-linear regime. These generalizations give hope for more consistent thermodynamic modeling in the future, for yet a wider range of applications. The International Journal of Thermophysics, with a tradition for reports on high quality experimental, computational, and theoretical results in thermophysics, has therefore found it timely to accept responsibility for assisting in the development of this branch of thermophysics. By naming a new Associate Editor with special responsibility for non-equilibrium thermodynamics, we hope to give the field more attention. Our hope is that a synergy can be realized between our traditional target group of authors and a new group of authors who are experienced in developing and using non-equilibrium thermodynamics to explain, understand, and describe processes with several driving forces. As a first move to foster such a development, this issue is publishing a collection of six articles, based on invited talks presented at the 6th International Workshop of

A novel construction of complex-valued Gaussian processes with arbitrary spectral densities and its application to excitation energy transfer

The recent experimental discoveries about excitation energy transfer (EET) in light harvesting antenna (LHA) attract a lot of interest. As an open non-equilibrium quantum system, the EET demands more rigorous theoretical framework to understand the interaction between system and environment and therein the evolution of reduced density matrix. A phonon is often used to model the fluctuating environment and convolutes the reduced quantum system temporarily. In this paper, we propose a novel way to construct complex-valued Gaussian processes to describe thermal quantum phonon bath exactly by converting the convolution of influence functional into the time correlation of complex Gaussian random field. Based on the construction, we propose a rigorous and efficient computational method, the covariance decomposition and conditional propagation scheme, to simulate the temporarily entangled reduced system. The new method allows us to study the non-Markovian effect without perturbation under the influence of different spectral densities of the linear system-phonon coupling coefficients. Its application in the study of EET in the Fenna-Matthews-Olson model Hamiltonian under four different spectral densities is discussed. Since the scaling of our algorithm is linear due to its Monte Carlo nature, the future application of the method for large LHA systems is attractive. In addition, this method can be used to study the effect of correlated initial condition on the reduced dynamics in the future.

Topological phases in adiabatic and nonadiabatic driven systems

In this work we study the geometrical and topological properties of nonequilibrium quantum systems driven by ac fields. We consider two tunnel-coupled spin qubits driven by either spatially homogeneous or inhomogeneous ac fields. Our analysis is an extension of the classical model introduced by Berry with the addition of the spatial degree of freedom. We calculate the Berry and Aharonov-Anandan geometric phases, and demonstrate the influence of the different field parameters in the geometric properties. We also discuss the topological properties associated with the different driving regimes, and show that by tuning the different parameters one can induce topological phase transitions, even in the nonadiabatic regime.

Scalable architecture for a room temperature solid-state quantum information processor

The realization of a scalable quantum information processor has emerged over the past decade as one of the central challenges at the interface of fundamental science and engineering. Here we propose and analyse an architecture for a scalable, solid-state quantum information processor capable of operating at room temperature. Our approach is based on recent experimental advances involving nitrogen-vacancy colour centres in diamond. In particular, we demonstrate that the multiple challenges associated with operation at ambient temperature, individual addressing at the nanoscale, strong qubit coupling, robustness against disorder and low decoherence rates can be simultaneously achieved under realistic, experimentally relevant conditions. The architecture uses a novel approach to quantum information transfer and includes a hierarchy of control at successive length scales. Moreover, it alleviates the stringent constraints currently limiting the realization of scalable quantum processors and will provide fundamental insights into the physics of non-equilibrium many-body quantum systems.

Emission characteristics of laser-driven dissipative coupled-cavity systems

We consider a laser-driven and dissipative system of two coupled cavities with Jaynes-Cummings nonlinearity. In particular, we investigate both incoherent and coherent laser driving, corresponding to different experimental situations. We employ Arnoldi time evolution as a numerical tool to solve exactly the many-body master equation describing the nonequilibrium quantum system. We evaluate the fluorescence spectrum and the spectrum of the second-order correlation function of the emitted light field. Finally, we relate the measured spectra of the dissipative quantum system to excitations of the corresponding nondissipative quantum system. Our results demonstrate how to interpret spectra obtained from dissipative quantum systems and specify what information is contained therein.

Dissipation and entropy production in open quantum systems

A microscopic description of an open system is generally expressed by the Hamiltonian of the form: Htot = Hsys + Henviron + Hsys−environ. We developed a microscopic theory of entropy and derived a general formula, so-called "entropy-Hamiltonian relation" (EHR), that connects the entropy of the system to the interaction Hamiltonian represented by Hsys-environ for a nonequilibrium open quantum system. To derive the EHR formula, we mapped the open quantum system to the representation space of the Liouville-space formulation or thermo field dynamics (TFD), and thus worked on the representation space ℒ := ℋ ⊗ , where ℋ denotes the ordinary Hilbert space while the tilde Hilbert space conjugates to ℋ. We show that the natural transformation (mapping) of nonequilibrium open quantum systems is accomplished within the theoretical structure of TFD. By using the obtained EHR formula, we also derived the equation of motion for the distribution function of the system. We demonstrated that by knowing the microscopic description of the interaction, namely, the specific form of Hsys−environ on the representation space ℒ, the EHR formulas enable us to evaluate the entropy of the system and to gain some information about entropy for nonequilibrium open quantum systems.

Dynamic entanglement in oscillating molecules and potential biological implications

We demonstrate that entanglement can persistently recur in an oscillating two-spin molecule that is coupled to a hot and noisy environment, in which no static entanglement can survive. The system represents a nonequilibrium quantum system which, driven through the oscillatory motion, is prevented from reaching its (separable) thermal equilibrium state. Environmental noise, together with the driven motion, plays a constructive role by periodically resetting the system, even though it will destroy entanglement as usual. As a building block, the present simple mechanism supports the perspective that entanglement can exist also in systems which are exposed to a hot environment and to high levels of decoherence, which we expect, e.g., for biological systems. Our results also suggest that entanglement plays a role in the heat exchange between molecular machines and environment. Experimental simulation of our model with trapped ions is within reach of the current state-of-the-art quantum technologies.

Exact matrix product solutions in the Heisenberg picture of an open quantum spin chain

In recent work, Hartmann et al (2009 Phys. Rev. Lett. 102 057202) demonstrated that the classical simulation of the dynamics of open 1D quantum systems with matrix product algorithms can often be dramatically improved by performing time evolution in the Heisenberg picture. For a closed system this was exemplified by an exact matrix product operator (MPO) solution of the time-evolved creation operator of a quadratic fermi chain with a matrix dimension of just two. In this work, we show that this exact solution can be significantly generalized to include the case of an open quadratic fermi chain subjected to master equation evolution with Lindblad operators that are linear in the fermionic operators. Remarkably even in this open system the time evolution of operators continues to be described by MPOs with the same fixed dimension as that required by the solution of a coherent quadratic fermi chain for all times. Through the use of matrix product algorithms the dynamical behaviour of operators in this non-equilibrium open quantum system can be computed with a cost that is linear in the system size. We present some simple numerical examples that highlight how useful this might be for the more detailed study of open system dynamics. Given that Heisenberg picture simulations have been demonstrated to offer significant accuracy improvements for other open systems that are not exactly solvable, our work also provides further insight into how and why this advantage arises.

Asymptotic nonequilibrium steady-state operators

We present a method for the calculation of asymptotic operators for nonequilibrium steady-state quantum systems. The asymptotic steady-state operator is obtained by averaging the corresponding operator in Heisenberg representation over infinitely long time. Several examples are considered to demonstrate the utility of our method. The results obtained within our approach are compared to those obtained within the Schwinger-Keldysh nonequilibrium Green's functions.

Quantum kinetic theory of trapped particles in a strong electromagnetic field

The idea of treating quantum systems by semiclassical representations using effective quantum potentials (forces) has been successfully applied in equilibrium by many authors, see e.g. [D. Bohm, Phys. Rev. 85 (1986) 166 and 180; D.K. Ferry, J.R. Zhou, Phys. Rev. B 48 (1993) 7944; A.V. Filinov, M. Bonitz, W. Ebeling, J. Phys. A 36 (2003) 5957 and references cited therein]. Here, this idea is extended to nonequilibrium quantum systems in an external field. A gauge-invariant quantum kinetic theory for weakly inhomogeneous charged particle systems in a strong electromagnetic field is developed within the framework of nonequilibrium Green’s functions. The equation for the spectral density is simplified by introducing a classical (local) form for the kinetics. Nonlocal quantum effects are accounted for in this way by replacing the bare external confinement potential with an effective quantum potential. The equation for this effective potential is identified and solved for weak inhomogeneity in the collisionless limit. The resulting nonequilibrium spectral function is used to determine the density of states and the modification of the Born collision operator in the kinetic equation for the Wigner function due to quantum confinement effects.

Unified approach to the derivation of work theorems for equilibrium and steady-state, classical and quantum Hamiltonian systems

We present a unified and simple method for deriving work theorems for classical and quantum Hamiltonian systems, both under equilibrium conditions and in a steady state. Throughout the paper, we adopt the partitioning of the total Hamiltonian into the system part, the bath part, and their coupling. We rederive many equalities which are available in the literature and obtain a number of new equalities for nonequilibrium classical and quantum systems. Our results can be useful for determining partition functions and (generalized) free energies through simulations or measurements performed on nonequilibrium systems.

Theoretical modeling of dark current in quantum dot infrared photodetectors using nonequilibrium Green’s functions

A theoretical model describing electron dynamics in quantum dot (QD) infrared photodetectors (QDIPs) is presented. The model is based on the nonequilibrium Green’s functions formalism which provides a general framework to study electron transport in a nonequilibrium quantum system and in the presence of interactions. A self-consistent solution of the charge density and the average potential energy through the device and satisfying Poisson’s equation has been obtained; hence, the Hamiltonian of the QDs is established. The self-energies due to coupling with the contact layers and due to internal electron interactions are calculated and then Green’s functions of the QDs are obtained by numerically solving their governing kinetic equations using the method of finite differences. A quantum transport equation using Green’s functions is formed to calculate the current. The model has been applied to simulate the dark current and to extract microscopic information about the density of states and carrier distribution in the quantum dot bound and continuum states. The simulated dark currents with this model are in good agreement with experimental results over a wide range of applied biases and temperatures. The model was also used to study the effect on the dark current and the average number of electrons occupying the QDs due to changing the QD doping density, the barrier separation between QD layers, and the number of QD layers. The model is general and can be applied to any QDIP structures as a tool in design and for predictions of their dark current characteristics.

Universality of Quantum Critical Dynamics in a Planar Optical Parametric Oscillator

We analyze the critical quantum fluctuations in a coherently driven planar optical parametric oscillator. We show that the presence of transverse modes combined with quantum fluctuations changes the behavior of the "quantum image" critical point. This zero-temperature nonequilibrium quantum system has the same universality class as a finite-temperature magnetic Lifshitz transition.

Critical fluctuations and entanglement in the nondegenerate parametric oscillator

We present a fully quantum mechanical treatment of the nondegenerate optical parametric oscillator both below and near threshold. This is a nonequilibrium quantum system with a critical point phase transition, that is also known to exhibit strong yet easily observed squeezing and quantum entanglement. Our treatment makes use of the positive $P$ representation and goes beyond the usual linearized theory. We compare our analytical results with numerical simulations and find excellent agreement. We also carry out a detailed comparison of our results with those obtained from stochastic electrodynamics, a theory obtained by truncating the equation of motion for the Wigner function, with a view to locating regions of agreement and disagreement between the two. We calculate commonly used measures of quantum behavior including entanglement, squeezing, and Einstein-Podolsky-Rosen (EPR) correlations as well as higher order tripartite correlations, and show how these are modified as the critical point is approached. These results are compared with those obtained using two degenerate parametric oscillators, and we find that in the near-critical region the nondegenerate oscillator has stronger EPR correlations. In general, the critical fluctuations represent an ultimate limit to the possible entanglement that can be achieved in a nondegenerate parametric oscillator.

Hydrostatic pressure of theO(N)φ4theory in the largeNlimit

With non-equilibrium applications in mind we present in this paper a self-contained calculation of the hydrostatic pressure of the O(N)\lambda \phi^4 theory at finite temperature. By combining the Keldysh-Schwinger closed-time path formalism with thermal Dyson-Schwinger equations we compute in the large N limit the hydrostatic pressure in a fully resumed form. We also calculate the high-temperature expansion for the pressure (in D=4) using the Mellin transform technique. The result obtained extends the results found by Drummond et al. [hep-ph/9708426] and Amelino-Camelia and Pi [hep-ph/9211211]. The latter are reproduced in the limits m_r(0)\to 0, T \to \infty and T \to \infty, respectively. Important issues of renormalizibility of composite operators at finite temperature are addressed and the improved energy-momentum tensor is constructed. The utility of the hydrostatic pressure in the non-equilibrium quantum systems is discussed.

DYNAMICAL DETAILED BALANCE AND LOCAL KMS CONDITION FOR NON-EQUILIBRIUM STATES

The principle of detailed balance is at the basis of equilibrium physics and is equivalent to the Kubo–Martin–Schwinger (KMS) condition (under quite general assumptions). In the present paper we prove that a large class of non-equilibrium quantum systems satisfies a dynamical generalization of the detailed balance condition (dynamical detailed balance) expressing the fact that all the micro-currents, associated to the Bohr frequencies are constant. The usual (equilibrium) detailed balance condition is characterized by the property that this constant is identically zero. From this we deduce a simple and experimentally measurable relation expressing the microcurrent associated to a transition between two levels ∊m→∊n as a linear combination of the occupation probabilities of the two levels, with coefficients given by the generalized susceptivities (transport coefficients). We then give a second characterization of the dynamical detailed balance condition using a master equation rather than the microcurrents. Finally we show that these two conditions are equivalent to a "local" generalization of the usual KMS condition. Summing up: rather than postulating some ansatz on the basis of phenomenological models or of numerical simulations, we deduce, directly in the quantum domain and from fundamental principles, some natural and simple non equilibrium generalizations of the three main characterizations of equilibrium states. Then we prove that these three, apparently very far, conditions are equivalent. These facts support our convinction that these three equivalent conditions capture a universal aspect of non equilibrium phenomena.

Photon-Assisted ac Transport through Quantum Dots

The ac currents through coherently driven quantum dots have been studied using a transfer-matrix method. This method enables us to calculate quantitatively the ac current of a nonequilibrium quantum system with realistic potential profiles. We show that the expected magnitude of the ac current induced by a time-varying potential is as large as that of the dc current and the photo-induced ac current can be observed by actual experiments. Amplitudes of ac current oscillate spatially, which means that the ac current depends on both frequency ω and wavenumber q. This is due to the fact that the ac current is induced by the interference between different sideband states. It has also been clarified that the quenching effect of ac current appears in a different manner from that of dc transport. Furthermore, we discuss a way of taking the thermal average of the ac current at a finite temperature under a finite dc-bias voltage.