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arXiv:1006.1931 · Journal of Mathematical Physics

Riccati equation and the problem of decoherence II: Symmetry and the solution of the Riccati equation

Bartłomiej Gardas

Published Apr 1, 2011• 8 citations
arXivHTMLPDF

Abstract

In this paper we revisit the problem of decoherence by applying the block operator matrices analysis. The Riccati algebraic equation associated with the Hamiltonian describing the process of decoherence is studied. We prove that if the environment responsible for decoherence is invariant with respect to the antilinear transformation then the antilinear operator solves the Riccati equation in question. We also argue that this solution leads to neither a linear nor an antilinear operator similarity matrix. Therefore, we cannot use the standard procedure for solving a linear differential equation (e.g., Schrödinger equation). Furthermore, the explicit solution of the Riccati equation is found for the case where the environmental operators commute with each other. We discuss the connection between our results and the standard description of decoherence (one that uses the Kraus representation). We show that the reduced dynamics we obtain does not have the Kraus representation if the initial correlations between the system and its environment are present. However, for any initial state of the system (even when the correlations occur) reduced dynamics can be written in a manageable way.

DOI
10.1063/1.3574889

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In this paper we revisit the problem of decoherence by applying the block operator matrices analysis. The Riccati algebraic equation associated with the Hamiltonian describing the process of decoherence is studied. We prove that if the environment responsible for decoherence is invariant with respect to the antilinear transformation then the antilinear operator solves the Riccati equation in question. We also argue that this solution leads to neither a linear nor an antilinear operator similarity matrix. Therefore, we cannot use the standard procedure for solving a linear differential equation (e.g., Schrödinger equation). Furthermore, the explicit solution of the Riccati equation is found for the case where the environmental operators commute with each other. We discuss the connection between our results and the standard description of decoherence (one that uses the Kraus representation). We show that the reduced dynamics we obtain does not have the Kraus representation if the initial correlations between the system and its environment are present. However, for any initial state of the system (even when the correlations occur) reduced dynamics can be written in a manageable way.
Quantum mechanics is essentially described in terms of complex quantities like wave functions. The interesting point is that phase and amplitude of the complex wave function are not independent of each other, but coupled by some kind of conservation law. This coupling exists in time-independent quantum mechanics and has a counterpart in its time-dependent form. It can be traced back to a reformulation of quantum mechanics in terms of nonlinear real Ermakov equations or equivalent complex nonlinear Riccati equations, where the quadratic term in the latter equation explains the origin of the phase-amplitude coupling. Since realistic physical systems are always in contact with some kind of environment this aspect is also taken into account. In this context, different approaches for describing open quantum systems, particularly effective ones, are discussed and compared. Certain kinds of nonlinear modifications of the Schrödinger equation are discussed as well as their interrelations and their relations to linear approaches via non-unitary transformations. The modifications of the aforementioned Ermakov and Riccati equations when environmental effects are included can be determined in the time-dependent case. From formal similarities conclusions can be drawn how the equations of time-independent quantum mechanics can be modified to also incluce the enviromental aspects.
We develop quantum algorithms that construct block-encodings of solution matrices for continuous- and discrete-time algebraic Riccati equations (CAREs and DAREs), differential Riccati equations (DREs), and finite Riccati recursions. The Quantum Weighted Riesz Method, unifying four kinds of Riccati problems, constructs projectors onto the solution graphs using weighted Riesz branching operators and recovers the solution matrices. Under the stated access and normalization assumptions, our algorithms for CAREs and DAREs have near-optimal query complexity Θ(Rα)Θ(\mathcal Rα)Θ(Rα) up to logarithmic factors, with the generalized singularity factor R\mathcal RR that reflects spectral separation, and the output normalization ααα. For DREs and finite-horizon problems, the query complexity has an additional initialization conditioning factor κinitκ_{\rm init}κinit​. We establish product query lower bounds for specified input-oracle families, demonstrating necessary joint dependence on spectral separation and initialization or output scale. We also prove that selected-value promise problems are BQP-complete on explicit circuit-generated families of single-control discrete-time algebraic and zero-terminal differential Riccati equations. Applications include classical feedback evaluation for linear-quadratic control, a query-complexity comparison for stable random-phase approximation Riccati equations in quantum chemistry, and heated boundary control with numerical validation.
For any master equation which is local in time, whether Markovian, non-Markovian, of Lindblad form or not, a general procedure is given for constructing the corresponding linear map from the initial state to the state at time t, including its Kraus-type representations. Formally, this is equivalent to solving the master equation. For an N-dimensional Hilbert space it requires (i) solving a first order N 2×N 2 matrix time evolution (to obtain the completely positive map), and (ii) diagonalizing a related N 2×N 2 matrix (to obtain a Kraus-type representation). Conversely, for a given time-dependent linear map, a necessary and sufficient condition is given for the existence of a corresponding master equation, where the (not necessarily unique) form of this equation is explicitly determined. It is shown that a “best possible” master equation may always be defined, for approximating the evolution in the case that no exact master equation exists. Examples involving qubits are given.
Dissipation and decoherence, and the evolution from pure to mixed states in quantum physics, are handled through master equations for the density matrix. Master equations such as the Lindblad equation preserve the trace of this matrix. Viewing them as first-order time-dependent operator equations for the elements of the density matrix, a unitary integration procedure can be adapted to solve for these elements. A simple model for decoherence preserves the Hermiticity of the density matrix. A single, classical Riccati equation is the only one requiring numerical handling to obtain a full solution of the quantum evolution. The procedure is general, valid for any number of levels, but is illustrated here for a three-level system with two driving fields. For various choices of the initial state, we study the evolution of the system as a function of the amplitudes, relative frequencies, and phases of the driven fields and of the strength of the decoherence. The monotonic growth of the entropy is followed as the system evolves from a pure to a mixed state. An example is provided by the n=3n=3n=3 states of the hydrogen atom in a time-dependent electric field, such degenerate manifolds affording an analytical solution.