No Arabic abstract
Efficient simulations of the dynamics of open systems is of wide importance for quantum science and tech-nology. Here, we introduce a generalization of the transfer-tensor, or discrete-time memory kernel, formalism to multi-time measurement scenarios. The transfer-tensor method sets out to compute the state of an open few-body quantum system at long times, given that only short-time system trajectories are available. Here, we showthat the transfer-tensor method can be extended to processes which include multiple interrogations (e.g. measurements) of the open system dynamics as it evolves, allowing us to propagate high order short-time correlation functions to later times, without further recourse to the underlying system-environment evolution. Our approach exploits the process-tensor description of open quantum processes to represent and propagate the dynamics in terms of an object from which any multi-time correlation can be extracted. As an illustration of the utility of the method, we study the build-up of system-environment correlations in the paradigmatic spin-boson model, and compute steady-state emission spectra, taking fully into account system-environment correlations present in the steady state.
Do phenomenological master equations with memory kernel always describe a non-Markovian quantum dynamics characterized by reverse flow of information? Is the integration over the past states of the system an unmistakable signature of non-Markovianity? We show by a counterexample that this is not always the case. We consider two commonly used phenomenological integro-differential master equations describing the dynamics of a spin 1/2 in a thermal bath. By using a recently introduced measure to quantify non-Markovianity [H.-P. Breuer, E.-M. Laine, and J. Piilo, Phys. Rev. Lett. 103, 210401 (2009)] we demonstrate that as far as the equations retain their physical sense, the key feature of non-Markovian behavior does not appear in the considered memory kernel master equations. Namely, there is no reverse flow of information from the environment to the open system. Therefore, the assumption that the integration over a memory kernel always leads to a non-Markovian dynamics turns out to be vulnerable to phenomenological approximations. Instead, the considered phenomenological equations are able to describe time-dependent and uni-directional information flow from the system to the reservoir associated to time-dependent Markovian processes.
Simulating complex processes can be intractable when memory effects are present, often necessitating approximations in the length or strength of the memory. However, quantum processes display distinct memory effects when probed differently, precluding memory approximations that are both universal and operational. Here, we show that it is nevertheless sensible to characterize the memory strength across a duration of time with respect to a sequence of probing instruments. We propose a notion of process recovery, leading to accurate predictions for any multi-time observable, with errors bounded by the memory strength. We then apply our framework to an exactly solvable non-Markovian model, highlighting the decay of memory for certain instruments that justify its truncation. Our formalism provides an unambiguous description of memory strength,paving the way for practical compression and recovery techniques pivotal to near-term quantum technologies.
The study of quantum dynamics featuring memory effects has always been a topic of interest within the theory of open quantum system, which is concerned about providing useful conceptual and theoretical tools for the description of the reduced dynamics of a system interacting with an external environment. Definitions of non-Markovian processes have been introduced trying to capture the notion of memory effect by studying features of the quantum dynamical map providing the evolution of the system states, or changes in the distinguishability of the system states themselves. We introduce basic notions in the framework of open quantum systems, stressing in particular analogies and differences with models used for introducing modifications of quantum mechanics which should help in dealing with the measurement problem. We further discuss recent developments in the treatment of non-Markovian processes and their role in considering more general modifications of quantum mechanics.
The persistence of a stochastic variable is the probability that it does not cross a given level during a fixed time interval. Although persistence is a simple concept to understand, it is in general hard to calculate. Here we consider zero mean Gaussian stationary processes in discrete time $n$. Few results are known for the persistence $P_0(n)$ in discrete time, except the large time behavior which is characterized by the nontrivial constant $theta$ through $P_0(n)sim theta^n$. Using a modified version of the Independent Interval Approximation (IIA) that we developed before, we are able to calculate $P_0(n)$ analytically in $z$-transform space in terms of the autocorrelation function $A(n)$. If $A(n)to0$ as $ntoinfty$, we extract $theta$ numerically, while if $A(n)=0$, for finite $n>N$, we find $theta$ exactly (within the IIA). We apply our results to three special cases: the nearest neighbor-correlated first order moving average process where $A(n)=0$ for $ n>1$, the double exponential-correlated second order autoregressive process where $A(n)=c_1lambda_1^n+c_2lambda_2^n$, and power law-correlated variables where $A(n)sim n^{-mu}$. Apart from the power-law case when $mu<5$, we find excellent agreement with simulations.
We extend non-Hermitian topological quantum walks on a Su-Schrieffer-Heeger (SSH) lattice [M. S. Rudner and L. Levitov, Phys. Rev. Lett. 102, 065703 (2009)] to the case of non-Markovian evolution. This non-Markovian model is established by coupling each unit cell in the SSH lattice to a reservoir formed by a quasi-continuum of levels. We find a topological transition in this model even in the case of non-Markovian evolution, where the walker may visit the reservoir and return to the SSH lattice at a later time. The existence of a topological transition does, however, depend on the low-frequency properties of the reservoir, characterized by a spectral density $J(epsilon)propto |epsilon|^alpha$. In particular, we find a robust topological transition for a sub-Ohmic ($alpha<1$) and Ohmic ($alpha=1$) reservoir, but no topological transition for a super-Ohmic ($alpha>1$) reservoir. This behavior is directly related to the well-known localization transition for the spin-boson model. We confirm the presence of non-Markovian dynamics by explicitly evaluating a measure of Markovianity for this model.