non-Markovian Effects Research Articles

Modeling quantum light-matter interactions in waveguide QED with retardation, nonlinear interactions, and a time-delayed feedback: Matrix product states versus a space-discretized waveguide model

We present two different methods for modelling non-Markovian quantum light-matter interactions in waveguide QED systems, using matrix product states (MPSs) and a space-discretized waveguide (SDW) model. After describing the general theory and implementation of both approaches, we compare and contrast these methods directly on three topical problems of interest in waveguide-QED, including (i) a two-level system (TLS) coupled to an infinite (one-dimensional) waveguide, (ii) a TLS coupled to a terminated waveguide with a time-delayed coherent feedback, and (iii) two spatially separated TLSs coupled within an infinite waveguide. Both approaches are shown to efficiently model multi-photon nonlinear dynamics in highly non-Markovian regimes, and we highlight the advantages and disadvantages of these methods for modelling waveguide QED interactions, including their implementation in Python, computational run times, and ease of conceptual understanding. We explore both vacuum dynamics as well as regimes of strong optical pumping, where a weak excitation approximation cannot be applied. The MPS approach scales better when modelling multi-photon dynamics and long delay times, and explicitly includes non-Markovian memory effects. In contrast, the SDW model accounts for non-Markovian effects through space discretization, and solves Markovian equations of motion, yet rigorously includes the effects of retardation. The SDW model, based on an extension of recent collisional pictures in quantum optics, is solved through quantum trajectory techniques, and can more easily add in additional dissipation processes, including off-chip decay and TLS pure dephasing. The impact of these processes is shown directly on feedback-induced population trapping and TLS entanglement between spatially separated TLSs.

Price response functions and spread impact in correlated financial markets

Recent research on the response of stock prices to trading activity revealed long-lasting effects, even across stocks of different companies. These results imply non-Markovian effects in price formation and when trading many stocks at the same time, in particular trading costs and price correlations. How the price response is measured depends on data set and research focus. However, it is important to clarify how the details of the price response definition modify the results. Here, we evaluate different price response implementations for the Trades and Quotes (TAQ) data set from the NASDAQ stock market and find that the results are qualitatively the same for two different definitions of time scale, but the response can vary by up to a factor of two. Furthermore, we show the key importance of the order between trade signs and returns, displaying the changes in the signal strength. Moreover, we confirm the dominating contribution of immediate price response directly after a trade, as we find that delayed responses are suppressed. Finally, we test the impact of the spread in the price response, detecting that large spreads have stronger impact.

Interferometric approach to open quantum systems and non-Markovian dynamics

We combine the dynamics of open quantum systems with interferometry and interference introducing the concept of open system interferometer. By considering a single photon in a Mach-Zehnder interferometer, where the polarization (open system) and frequency (environment) of the photon interact, we theoretically show how inside the interferometer path-wise polarization dephasing dynamics is Markovian while the joint dynamics displays non-Markovian features. Outside the interferometer and due to interference, the open system displays rich dynamical features with distinct alternatives: Only one path displaying non-Markovian memory effects, both paths individually displaying them, or no memory effects appearing at all. Our results also illustrate that measuring the photon's path can either create or destroy non-Markovian memory effects depending on whether the measurement takes place in or outside the interferometer. Moreover, the scheme allows to probe the optical path difference inside the interferometer by studying non-Markovianity outside the interferometer. With our framework and interference, it is also possible to introduce dissipative features for the open system dynamics even though the system-environment interaction itself contains only dephasing. In general, the results open so far unexplored avenues to control open system dynamics and for fundamental studies of quantum physics.

Estimating the degree of non-Markovianity using machine learning

In the last years, the application of machine learning methods has become increasingly relevant in different fields of physics. One of the most significant subjects in the theory of open quantum systems is the study of the characterization of non-Markovian memory effects that emerge dynamically throughout the time evolution of open systems as they interact with their surrounding environment. Here we consider two well-established quantifiers of the degree of memory effects, namely, the trace distance and the entanglement-based measures of non-Markovianity. We demonstrate that using machine learning techniques, in particular, support vector machine algorithms, it is possible to estimate the degree of non-Markovianity in two paradigmatic open system models with high precision. Our approach can be experimentally feasible to estimate the degree of non-Markovianity, since it requires a single or at most two rounds of state tomography.

Quantum thermal transport via a canonically transformed Redfield approach

We develop a non-Markovian approach to study quantum dissipation and thermal transport in the nonequilibrium two-level system based on a canonical transformation and full-counting statistics. Specifically, we analytically study dissipative dynamics of population difference, quantum coherence, and heat current in terms of the canonical transformed Redfield approach. It demonstrates that the dynamics of both the population difference and the energy flow show monotonic decaying behaviors with the identical decay rate, whereas the quantum coherence is dominated by the oscillation showing the non-Markovian effect. Moreover, through tuning the temperature bias of thermal baths, negative differential thermal conductance is clearly exhibited beyond the weak system-bath coupling limit and Markovian approximation. The results may provide guidance for the efficient control of energy and the information transport in nanodevices.

Relationship between costs for quantum error mitigation and non-Markovian measures

Quantum error mitigation (QEM) has been proposed as an alternative method of quantum error correction to compensate errors in quantum systems without qubit overhead. While Markovian gate errors on digital quantum computers have been mainly considered previously, it is indispensable to discuss a relationship between QEM and non-Markovian errors because non-Markovian noise effects inevitably exist in most of the solid-state systems. In this work, we investigate the QEM for non-Markovian noise, and show that there is a clear relationship between costs for QEM and non-Markovian measures. As examples, we show several non-Markovian noise models to bridge a gap between our theoretical framework and concrete physical systems. This discovery may help in designing better QEM strategies for realistic quantum devices with non-Markovian environments.

Interacting quantum plasmons in metal-dielectric structures

We develop a consistent quantum description of surface plasmons interacting with quantum emitters and external electromagnetic field. Within the framework of macroscopic electrodynamics in dispersive and absorptive medium, we derive, in the Markov approximation, the canonical Hamiltonian, commutation relations, and coupling parameters for the plasmon modes in metal-dielectric structures of an arbitrary shape whose characteristic size is well below the diffraction limit. We then develop a new quantum approach bridging the macroscopic and canonical schemes which describes the interacting plasmons in terms of bosonic modes with linear dispersion whose coupling to the electromagnetic field and quantum emitters is mediated by the classical plasmons. By accurately accounting for medium optical dispersion and losses in the interactions of surface plasmons with light and localized electron excitations, this approach can serve as a framework for studying non-Markovian effects in plasmonics.

Non-Markovian majority-vote model.

Non-Markovian dynamics pervades human activity and social networks and it induces memory effects and burstiness in a wide range of processes including interevent time distributions, duration of interactions in temporal networks, and human mobility. Here, we propose a non-Markovian majority-vote model (NMMV) that introduces non-Markovian effects in the standard (Markovian) majority-vote model (SMV). The SMV model is one of the simplest two-state stochastic models for studying opinion dynamics, and displays a continuous order-disorder phase transition at a critical noise. In the NMMV model we assume that the probability that an agent changes state is not only dependent on the majority state of his neighbors but it also depends on his age, i.e., how long the agent has been in his current state. The NMMV model has two regimes: the aging regime implies that the probability that an agent changes state is decreasing with his age, while in the antiaging regime the probability that an agent changes state is increasing with his age. Interestingly, we find that the critical noise at which we observe the order-disorder phase transition is a nonmonotonic function of the rate β of the aging (antiaging) process. In particular the critical noise in the aging regime displays a maximum as a function of β while in the antiaging regime displays a minimum. This implies that the aging/antiaging dynamics can retard/anticipate the transition and that there is an optimal rate β for maximally perturbing the value of the critical noise. The analytical results obtained in the framework of the heterogeneous mean-field approach are validated by extensive numerical simulations on a large variety of network topologies.

Quantum speed limit time in the presence of disturbance

Quantum theory sets a bound on the minimal time it takes for a system to evolve from initial state to target state. This bound is called the quantum speed limit (QSL) time. The quantum speed limit time is used to quantify the maximal speed of the quantum evolution. The quantum evolution will be faster if the quantum speed limit time decreases. In this work, we study the quantum speed limit time for an open quantum system in the presence of disturbance in an environment. We use the model which is provided by Ban [Phys. Rev. A 99, 012116 (2019)]. In this model, two quantum systems [Formula: see text] and [Formula: see text] interact with environment sequentially. At first, quantum system [Formula: see text] interacts with the environment [Formula: see text] as an auxiliary system, then quantum system [Formula: see text] starts its interaction with disturbed environment immediately. In this work, we consider the dephasing coupling with two types of environment that has different spectral density: Ohmic and Lorentzian. We observe that, non-Markovian effects will appear in the dynamics of the second quantum system [Formula: see text] due to the interaction of the first quantum system [Formula: see text] with the environment. Given the fact that the quantum speed limit time reduces due to the non-Markovian feature of quantum evolution, we show that disturbance effects will reduce the quantum speed limit time for the dynamics of the second quantum system [Formula: see text].

Detectors interacting through quantum fields: Non-Markovian effects, nonperturbative generation of correlations, and apparent noncausality

We study the system of two localized detectors (oscillators) interacting through a massless quantum field in a vacuum state via an Unruh-DeWitt coupling. This system admits an exact solution providing a good model for addressing fundamental issues in particle-field interactions, causality and locality in quantum field measurements that are relevant to proposed quantum experiments in space. Our analysis of the exact solution leads to the following results. (i) Common approximations used in the study of analogous open quantum systems fail when the distance between the detectors becomes of the order of the relaxation time. In particular, the creation of correlations between remote detectors is not well described by ordinary perturbation theory and the Markov approximation. (ii) There is a unique asymptotic state that is correlated; it is not entangled unless the detector separation is of the order of magnitude of the wavelength of the exchanged quanta. (iii) The evolution of seemingly localized observables is non-causal. The latter is a manifestation of Fermi's two-atom problem, albeit in an exactly solvable system. We argue that the problem of causality requires a reexamination of the notion of entanglement in relativistic systems, in particular, the physical relevance of its extraction from the quantum vacuum.

Semion formalism for spin and qubit systems: Non-Markovian treatment

Using semion substitution for spin variables we perform an ab initio derivation of effective action for an open quantum two-level system . For this purpose, we introduce, by using the Hubbard-Stratonovich transformation a two-time complex quantum field which average value plays the role of the Green's function for the spin variables. The field thus introduced allows us to develop a diagram technique in a standard way. The proposed formalism is used to study a spin embedded into an Ohmic reservoir as an example of the spin-boson model. Non-Markovian effects in this system are analyzed.

Violation of thermodynamics uncertainty relations in a periodically driven work-to-work converter from weak to strong dissipation

We study a model of isothermal steady-state work-to-work converter, where a single quantum two-level system (TLS) driven by time-dependent periodic external fields acts as the working medium and is permanently put in contact with a thermal reservoir at fixed temperature $T$. By combining Short-Iterative Lanczos (SIL) method and analytic approaches, we study the converter performance in the linear response regime and in a wide range of driving frequencies, from weak to strong dissipation. We show that for our ideal quantum machine several parameter ranges exist where a violation of Thermodynamics Uncertainty Relations (TUR) occurs. We find the violation to depend on the driving frequency and on the dissipation strength, and we trace it back to the degree of coherence of the quantum converter. We eventually discuss the influence of other possible sources of violation, such as non-Markovian effects during the converter dynamics.

Exponentially-enhanced quantum sensing with non-Hermitian lattice dynamics

Non-Hermitian systems exhibit markedly different phenomena than their conventional Hermitian counterparts. Several such features, such as the non-Hermitian skin effect, are only present in spatially extended systems. Potential applications of these effects in many-mode systems however remains largely unexplored. Here, we study how unique features of non-Hermitian lattice systems can be harnessed to improve Hamiltonian parameter estimation in a fully quantum setting. While the quintessential non-Hermitian skin effect does not provide any distinct advantage, alternate effects yield dramatic enhancements. We show that certain asymmetric non-Hermitian tight-binding models with a {{mathbb{Z}}}_{2} symmetry yield a pronounced sensing advantage: the quantum Fisher information per photon increases exponentially with system size. We find that these advantages persist in regimes where non-Markovian and non-perturbative effects become important. Our setup is directly compatible with a variety of quantum optical and superconducting circuit platforms, and already yields strong enhancements with as few as three lattice sites.

Non-Markovian effects in dynamics of exciton-polariton Bose condensates

Formation of exciton-polariton condensate due to incoherent pumping of an excitonic reservoir is considered. The condensate dynamics is governed by a system of stochastic integro-differential equations of Langevin's type corresponding to the model developed by Elistratov and Lozovik [12]. Attention is concentrated on non-Markovian interaction of the condensate with the excitonic and photonic reservoirs. It is shown that dynamical memory caused by the non-Markovian interaction qualitatively changes the condensate behavior as compared to the Markovian regime. In particular, it diminishes the threshold of pumping strength for the condensate emergence. Also, it is found that the non-Markovian regime leads to relaxation oscillations corresponding to population exchange between the condensate and the excitonic reservoir. Increasing of incoherent pumping strength leads to chaos of relaxation oscillations that is accompanied by random-like transitions between the lower and upper polaritonic states.

Generalized theory of pseudomodes for exact descriptions of non-Markovian quantum processes

We develop an exact framework to describe the non-Markovian dynamics of an open quantum system interacting with an environment modeled by a generalized spectral density function. The approach relies on mapping the initial system onto an auxiliary configuration, comprising the original open system coupled to a small number of discrete modes, which in turn are each coupled to an independent Markovian reservoir. Based on the connection between the discrete modes and the poles of the spectral density function, we show how expanding the system using the discrete modes allows for the full inclusion non-Markovian effects within an enlarged open system whose dynamics is governed by an exact Lindblad master equation. Initially we apply this result to obtain a generalization of the pseudomode method [B. M. Garraway, Phys. Rev. A 55, 2290 (1997)] in cases where the spectral density function has a Lorentzian structure. For many other types of spectral density function, we extend our proof to show that an open system dynamics may be modeled physically using discrete modes which admit a non-Hermitian coupling to the system, and for such cases determine the equivalent master equation to no longer be of Lindblad form. For applications involving two discrete modes, we demonstrate how to convert between pathological and Lindblad forms of the master equation using the techniques of the pseudomode method.

Memory effects in fluctuating dynamic density-functional theory: theory and simulations

This work introduces a theoretical framework to describe the dynamics of reacting multi-species fluid systems in-and-out of equilibrium. Our starting point is the system of generalised Langevin equations which describes the evolution of the positions and momenta of the constituent particles. One particular difficulty that this system of generalised Langevin equations exhibits is the presence of a history-dependent (i.e. non-Markovian) term, which in turn makes the system’s dynamics dependent on its own past history. With the appropriate definitions of the local number density and momentum fields, we are able to derive a non-Markovian Navier–Stokes-like system of equations constituting a generalisation of the Dean–Kawasaki model. These equations, however, still depend on the full set of particles phase-space coordinates. To remove this dependence on the microscopic level without washing out the fluctuation effects characteristic of a mesoscopic description, we need to carefully ensemble-average our generalised Dean–Kawasaki equations. The outcome of such a treatment is a set of non-Markovian fluctuating hydrodynamic equations governing the time evolution of the mesoscopic density and momentum fields. Moreover, with the introduction of an energy functional which recovers the one used in classical density-functional theory and its dynamic extension (DDFT) under the local-equilibrium approximation, we derive a novel non-Markovian fluctuating DDFT (FDDFT) for reacting multi-species fluid systems. With the aim of reducing the fluctuating dynamics to a single equation for the density field, in the spirit of classical DDFT, we make use of a deconvolution operator which makes it possible to obtain the overdamped version of the non-Markovian FDDFT. A finite-volume discretization of the derived non-Markovian FDDFT is then proposed. With this, we validate our theoretical framework in-and-out-of-equilibrium by comparing results against atomistic simulations. Finally, we illustrate the influence of non-Markovian effects on the dynamics of non-linear chemically reacting fluid systems with a detailed study of memory-driven Turing patterns.

Relaxation process of a two-level system in a coherent superposition of two environments

Relaxation processes are studied for a two-level system which is placed under the influenced by a superposition of two environments. Two cases are treated: one is that the two-level system interacts with the environment via both linear dissipative coupling and pure dephasing coupling in the Markovian limit and the other uses an exactly solvable single-excitation spin-boson model. In both the cases, an ancillary two-level system determines which environment of the two actually interacts with the relevant two-level system. In the Markovian limit, the reduced time-evolution of the two-level system is characterized by the longitudinal relaxation time $$T_{1}$$ and the transversal relaxation time $$T_{2}$$ which satisfy the inequality $$2T_{1}\ge T_{2}$$ . If the strict inequality $$2T_{1}>T_{2}$$ is fulfilled, the coherence of the two-level system can be definitely enhanced by the environmental superposition effect. If the equality $$2T_{1}=T_{2}$$ holds, it can be improved probabilistically. On the other hand, in the exactly solvable model, although the non-Markovian effect is observed in the reduced time-evolution, the coherence can be improved only probabilistically since the model does not include a pure dephasing coupling.

Quantum parameter estimation in a dissipative environment

We investigate the performance of quantum parameter estimation based on a qubit probe in a dissipative bosonic environment beyond the traditional paradigm of weak-coupling and rotating-wave approximations. By making use of an exactly numerical hierarchical equations of motion method, we analyze the influences of the non-Markovian memory effect induced by the environment and the form of probe-environment interaction on the estimation precision. It is found that (i) the non-Markovianity can effectively boost the estimation performance and (ii) the estimation precision can be improved by introducing a perpendicular probe-environment interaction. Our results indicate the scheme of parameter estimation in a noisy environment can be optimized via engineering the decoherence mechanism.

Non-Markovian quantum dynamics: Extended correlated projection superoperators.

The correlated projection superoperator techniques provide a better understanding about how correlations lead to strong non-Markovian effects in open quantum systems. Their superoperators are independent of initial state, which may not be suitable for some cases. To improve this, we develop another approach, that is extending the composite system before use the correlated projection superoperator techniques. Such an approach allows the choice of different superoperators for different initial states. We apply these techniques to a simple model to illustrate the general approach. The numerical simulations of the full Schrödinger equation of the model reveal the power and efficiency of the method.

Analysis of non-Markovian effects in generalized birth-death models

Birth-death processes are a fundamental reaction module for which we can find its prototypes in many scientific fields. For such a kind of module, if all the reaction events are Markovian, the reaction kinetics is simple. However, experimentally observable quantities are in general consequences of a series of reactions, implying that the synthesis of a macromolecule in general involve multiple middle reaction steps with some reactions that would not be specified by experiments. This multistep process can create molecular memory between reaction events, leading to non-Markovian behavior. Based on the theoretical framework established in a recent paper published in [ 39 ], we find that the effect of non-Markovianity is equivalent to the introduction of a feedback, non-Markovianity always amplifies the mean level of the product if the death reaction is non-Markovian but always reduces the mean level if the birth reaction is non-Markovian, and in contrast to Markovianity, non-Markovianity can reduce or amplify the product noise, depending on the details of waiting-time distributions characterizing reaction events. Examples analysis indicates that non-Markovianity, whose effects were neglected in previous studies, can significantly impact gene expression.