The quantum correlations between a qubit and its environment are described quantitatively in terms of interatomic distance. Specifically, considering a realistic system of two two-level atoms and taking into account the dipole-dipole interaction and
collective damping, the quantum entanglement and quantum discord are investigated, during the dissipative process, as a function of the interatomic distance. For atoms that are initially maximally entangled, it turns out that there is a critical distance where each atom is maximally quantum correlated with its environment. Counterintuitively, the approach of the two atoms can maximize the entanglement between each one and the environment and, even at the same distance, minimize the loss of entanglement between the pair.
We present a constructive argument to demonstrate the universality of the sudden death of entanglement in the case of two non-interacting qubits, each of which generically coupled to independent Markovian environments at zero temperature. Conditions
for the occurrence of the abrupt disappearance of entanglement are determined and, most importantly, rigorously shown to be almost always satisfied: Dynamical models for which the sudden death of entanglement does not occur are seen to form a highly idealized zero-measure subset within the set of all possible quantum dynamics.
