Simulating Open Quantum Systems with Hamiltonian Ensembles and the Nonclassicality of the Dynamics

Hong-Bin Chen, Clemens Gneiting, Ping-Yuan Lo, Yueh-Nan Chen, and Franco Nori
Phys. Rev. Lett. 120, 030403 – Published 19 January 2018
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Abstract

The incoherent dynamical properties of open quantum systems are generically attributed to an ongoing correlation between the system and its environment. Here, we propose a novel way to assess the nature of these system-environment correlations by examining the system dynamics alone. Our approach is based on the possibility or impossibility to simulate open-system dynamics with Hamiltonian ensembles. As we show, such (im)possibility to simulate is closely linked to the system-environment correlations. We thus define the nonclassicality of open-system dynamics in terms of the nonexistence of a Hamiltonian-ensemble simulation. This classifies any nonunital open-system dynamics as nonclassical. We give examples for open-system dynamics that are unital and classical, as well as unital and nonclassical.

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  • Received 1 April 2017

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevLett.120.030403

© 2018 American Physical Society

Physics Subject Headings (PhySH)

Quantum Information, Science & TechnologyGeneral Physics

Authors & Affiliations

Hong-Bin Chen1,*, Clemens Gneiting2, Ping-Yuan Lo3, Yueh-Nan Chen1,4,†, and Franco Nori2,5

  • 1Department of Physics, National Cheng Kung University, Tainan 70101, Taiwan
  • 2Quantum Condensed Matter Research Group, RIKEN, Wako-shi, Saitama 351-0198, Japan
  • 3Department of Electrophysics, National Chiao Tung University, Hsinchu 30010, Taiwan
  • 4Physics Division, National Center for Theoretical Sciences, Hsinchu 30013, Taiwan
  • 5Physics Department, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Michigan 48109-1040, USA

  • *hongbinchen@phys.ncku.edu.tw
  • yuehnan@mail.ncku.edu.tw

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Issue

Vol. 120, Iss. 3 — 19 January 2018

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