Nonadiabatic Phases Research Articles

Time-optimal holonomic quantum computation

A three-level system can be used in a $\Lambda$-type configuration in order to construct a universal set of quantum gates through the use of non-Abelian non-adiabatic geometrical phases. Such construction allows for high-speed operation times which diminish the effects of decoherence. This might be, however, accompanied by a breakdown of the validity of the rotating wave approximation (RWA) due to the comparable time scale between counter-rotating terms and the pulse length, which greatly affects the dynamics. Here, we investigate the trade-off between dissipative effects and the RWA validity, obtaining the optimal regime for the operation of the holonomic quantum gates.

Quantum Physics with Neutrons: From Spinor Symmetry to Kochen-Specker Phenomena

In 1974 perfect crystal interferometry has been developed and immediately afterwards the 4π-symmetry of spinor wave-functions has been verified. The new method opened a new access to the observation of intrinsic quantum phenomena. Spin-superposition, quantum state reconstruction and quantum beat effects are examples of such investigations. In this connection efforts have been made to separate and measure various dynamical and geometrical phases. Non-cyclic and non-adiabatic topological phases have been identified and their stability against various fluctuations and dissipative forces has been investigated by means of ultra-cold neutrons. An entanglement between different degrees of freedom of a single neutron system demonstrated the contextuality feature of quantum mechanics. In its continuation this yields to Kochen-Specker theorem like investigations providing a new basis for information processing and for the understanding of quantum physics in general. All investigations show the equivalence of various phase spaces and show how physical phenomena are correlated by quantum laws. Some curiosa occurred during the experiments and some epistemological aspects will be discussed as well.

Suppression of nonadiabatic phases by a non-Markovian environment: Easier observation of Berry phases

We consider a two-level system coupled to a highly non-Markovian environment when the coupling axis rotates with time. The environment may be quantum (for example a bosonic bath or a spin bath) or classical (such as classical noise). We show that an Anderson orthogonality catastrophe suppresses transitions, so that the system's instantaneous eigenstates (parallel and antiparallel to the coupling axis) can adiabatically follow the rotation. These states thereby acquire Berry phases; geometric phases given by the area enclosed by the coupling axis. Unlike in earlier proposals for environment-induced Berry phases, here there is little decoherence, so one does not need a decoherence-free subspace. Indeed we show that this Berry phase should be much easier to observe than a conventional one because it is not masked by either the dynamic phase or the leading nonadiabatic phase. The effects that we discuss should be observable in any qubit device where one can drive three parameters in the Hamiltonian with strong man-made noise.

Geometric phase of a two-level system in a dissipative environment

The geometric (Berry) phase of a two-level system in a dissipative environment is analyzed by using the second-quantized formulation, which provides a unified and gauge-invariant treatment of adiabatic and nonadiabatic phases and is thus applicable to a quantitative analysis of transitional regions away from ideal adiabaticity. In view of the recent experimental observation of the Berry phase in a superconducting qubit, we illustrate our formulation for a concrete adiabatic case in the Ohmic dissipation. The correction to the total phase together with the geometry-dependent dephasing time is given in a transparent way. The behavior of the geometric phase away from ideal adiabaticity is also analyzed in some detail.

GEOMETRIC PHASES, GAUGE SYMMETRIES AND RAY REPRESENTATION

The conventional formulation of the nonadiabatic (Aharonov–Anandan) phase is based on the equivalence class {eiα(t)ψ(t,x)} which is not a symmetry of the Schrödinger equation. This equivalence class when understood as defining generalized rays in the Hilbert space is not generally consistent with the superposition principle in interference and polarization phenomena. The hidden local gauge symmetry, which arises from the arbitrariness of the choice of coordinates in the functional space, is then proposed as a basic gauge symmetry in the nonadiabatic phase. This reformulation reproduces all the successful aspects of the nonadiabatic phase in a manner manifestly consistent with the conventional notion of rays and the superposition principle. The hidden local symmetry is thus identified as the natural origin of the gauge symmetry in both of the adiabatic and nonadiabatic phases in the absence of gauge fields, and it allows a unified treatment of all the geometric phases. The nonadiabatic phase may well be regarded as a special case of the adiabatic phase in this reformulation, contrary to the customary understanding of the adiabatic phase as a special case of the nonadiabatic phase. Some explicit examples of geometric phases are discussed to illustrate this reformulation.

Non-Born-Oppenheimer path in anti-Hermitian dynamics for nonadiabatic transitions

A serious difficulty in the semiclassical Ehrenfest theory for nonadiabatic transitions is that a path passing across the avoided crossing is forced to run on a potential averaged over comprising adiabatic potential surfaces that commit the avoided crossing. Therefore once a path passes through the crossing region, it immediately becomes incompatible with the standard view of "classical trajectory" running on an adiabatic surface. This casts a fundamental question to the theoretical structure of chemical dynamics. In this paper, we propose a non-Born-Oppenheimer path that is generated by an anti-Hermitian Hamiltonian, whose complex-valued eigenenergies can cross in their real parts and avoid crossing in the imaginary parts in the vicinity of the nonadiabatic transition region. We discuss the properties of this non-Born-Oppenheimer path and thereby show its compatibility with the Born-Oppenheimer classical trajectories. This theory not only allows the geometrical branching of the paths but gives the nonadiabatic transition amplitudes and quantum phases along the generated paths.

Geometric phase for entangled states of two spin-1/2 particles in rotating magnetic field

The geometric phase for states of two spin-1/2 particles in rotating magnetic field is calculated, in particular, the noncyclic and cyclic non-adiabatic phases for the general case are explicitly derived and discussed. We find that the cyclic geometric phase for the entangled state can always be written as a sum of the phases of the two particles respectively; the same cannot be said for the noncyclic phase. We also investigate the geometric phase of mixed state of one particle in a biparticle system, and we find that the geometric phase for one subsystem of an entangled system is always affected by another subsystem of the entangled system.

Implementation of universal quantum gates based on nonadiabatic geometric phases.

We propose an experimentally feasible scheme to achieve quantum computation based on nonadiabatic geometric phase shifts, in which a cyclic geometric phase is used to realize a set of universal quantum gates. Physical implementation of this set of gates is designed for Josephson junctions and for NMR systems. Interestingly, we find that the nonadiabatic phase shift may be independent of the operation time under appropriate controllable conditions. A remarkable feature of the present nonadiabatic geometric gates is that there is no intrinsic limitation on the operation time.

Geometric phases for corotating elliptical vortex patches

We describe a geometric phase that arises when two elliptical vortex patches corotate. Using the Hamiltonian moment model of Melander, Zabusky, and Styczek [J. Fluid Mech. 167, 95–115 (1986)] we consider two corotating uniform elliptical patches evolving according to the second order truncated equations of the model. The phase is computed in the adiabatic setting of a slowly varying Hamiltonian as in the work of Hannay [J. Phys. A 18, 221–230 (1985)] and Berry [Proc. R. Soc. London, Ser. A 392, 45–57 (1984)]. We also discuss the geometry of the symplectic phase space of the model in the context of nonadiabatic phases. The adiabatic phase appears in the orientation angle of each patch—it is similiar in form and is calculated using a multiscale perturbation procedure as in the point vortex configuration of Newton [Physica D 79, 416–423 (1994)] and Shashikanth and Newton [J. Nonlinear Sci. 8, 183–214 (1998)], however, an extra factor due to the internal stucture of the patch is present. The final result depends on the initial orientation of the patches unlike the phases in the works of Hannay and Berry [J. Phys. A 18, 221–230 (1985)]; [Proc. R. Soc. London, Ser. A 392, 45–57 (1984)]. We then show that the adiabatic phase can be interpreted as the holonomy of a connection on the trivial principal fiber bundle π:T2×S1→S1, where T2 is identified with the product of the momentum level sets of two Kirchhoff vortex patches and S1 is diffeomorphic to the momentum level set of two point vortex motion. This two point vortex motion is the motion that the patch centroids approach in the adiabatic limit.

Geometric phases and Schrödinger's cat state

A matrix method is presented for treating the dynamical phases, adiabatic phases and nonadiabatic phases of quantum superposition states. It is effective for any parameter-varying Hamiltonian system. As two examples, the evolution of mass-varying harmonic oscillator and the evolution of coherent states under parameter-varying displaced operator have been studied, Some new phenomena are obtained in the first case and the possible producing of so-called Schrodinger's cat state by geometric phases is pointed out. The quantum state useful for the quantum optical verification of Berry's phase is introduced.

Exact solution of the linear nonautonomous system with the SU (1, 1) dynamical group

The exact solution and the invariant Cartan operator of the linear nonautonomous system with the SU (1, 1) dynamical group are obtained by using the method of algebraic dynamics. The profound quantum-classical correspondence of the solutions is exhibited clearly: the quantum solutions of the system are determined by those of the corresponding classical equations and a continuous set of classical complex orbits corresponds to just one quantum solution. The nonadiabatic and adiabatic Berry phases are also calculated.