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arXiv:1401.1787

Quantum Statistical Mechanics. II. Stochastic Schrodinger Equation

Phil Attard

Published Dec 18, 2013• 0 citations
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Abstract

The stochastic dissipative Schrodinger equation is derived for an open quantum system consisting of a sub-system able to exchange energy with a thermal reservoir. The resultant evolution of the wave function also gives the evolution of the density matrix, which is an explicit, stochastic form of the Lindblad master equation. A quantum fluctuation-dissipation theorem is also derived. The time correlation function is discussed.

DOI
10.48550/arxiv.1401.1787

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The stochastic dissipative Schrodinger equation is derived for an open quantum system consisting of a sub-system able to exchange energy with a thermal reservoir. The resultant evolution of the wave function also gives the evolution of the density matrix, which is an explicit, stochastic form of the Lindblad master equation. A quantum fluctuation-dissipation theorem is also derived. The time correlation function is discussed.
Stochastic methods are ubiquitous to a variety of fields, ranging from physics to economics and mathematics. In many cases, in the investigation of natural processes, stochasticity arises every time one considers the dynamics of a system in contact with a somewhat bigger system, an environment with which it is considered in thermal equilibrium. Any small fluctuation of the environment has some random effect on the system. In physics, stochastic methods have been applied to the investigation of phase transitions, thermal and electrical noise, thermal relaxation, quantum information, Brownian motion and so on. In this review, we will focus on the so-called stochastic Schrödinger equation. This is useful as a starting point to investigate the dynamics of open quantum systems capable of exchanging energy and momentum with an external environment. We discuss in some detail the general derivation of a stochastic Schrödinger equation and some of its recent applications to spin thermal transport, thermal relaxation, and Bose-Einstein condensation. We thoroughly discuss the advantages of this formalism with respect to the more common approach in terms of the reduced density matrix. The applications discussed here constitute only a few examples of a much wider range of applicability.
The overview of the principles of quantum statistical mechanics are given, emphasizing the fundamental differences with respect to classical statistical mechanics, as well as the analogies prevailing for the formulation of the properties. A functional time-reversal symmetry relation is presented, allowing the deduction of response theory. The Kubo formula is obtained for the linear response properties and the fluctuation–dissipation theorem is established. For weakly coupled systems, the quantum master equation and the corresponding stochastic Schrödinger equation are deduced. The slippage of initial conditions is discussed in relation to the positivity of the reduced statistical operator. The results are illustrated with the spin-boson model.
A systematic procedure for deriving the master equation of a dissipative system is reported in the framework of stochastic description. For the Caldeira-Leggett model of the harmonic-oscillator bath, a detailed and elementary derivation of the bath-induced stochastic field is presented. The dynamics of the system is thereby fully described by a stochastic differential equation, and the desired master equation would be acquired with statistical averaging. It is shown that the existence of a closed-form master equation depends on the specificity of the system as well as the feature of the dissipation characterized by the spectral density function. For a dissipative harmonic oscillator it is observed that the correlation between the stochastic field due to the bath and the system can be decoupled, and the master equation naturally results. Such an equation possesses the Lindblad form in which time-dependent coefficients are determined by a set of integral equations. It is proved that the obtained master equation is equivalent to the well-known Hu-Paz-Zhang equation based on the path-integral technique. The procedure is also used to obtain the master equation of a dissipative harmonic oscillator in time-dependent fields.
Quantum stochastic methods based on effective wave functions form a framework for investigating the generally non-Markovian dynamics of a quantum-mechanical system coupled to a bath. They promise to be computationally superior to the master-equation approach, which is numerically expensive for large dimensions of the Hilbert space. Here, we numerically investigate the suitability of a known stochastic Schrödinger equation that is local in time to give a description of thermal relaxation and energy transport. This stochastic Schrödinger equation can be solved with a moderate numerical cost, indeed comparable to that of a Markovian system, and reproduces the dynamics of a system evolving according to a general non-Markovian master equation. After verifying that it describes thermal relaxation correctly, we apply it for the first time to the energy transport in a spin chain. We also discuss a portable algorithm for the generation of the coloured noise associated with the numerical solution of the non-Markovian dynamics.
We develop a Lindblad framework for quantum stochastic thermodynamics to study the nonequilibrium thermodynamics of open quantum systems. Our approach adopts the local quantum detailed balance condition, ensuring thermodynamic consistency and leading to a joint fluctuation theorem of quantum work and heat. Instead of solving the full evolution of the density matrix, we employ an effective parametrization to derive the full counting statistics of work and heat and determine the optimal protocols. As an application, we refine the quantum Brownian motion master equation to ensure the quantum detailed balance condition, derive the optimal protocols at different temperatures, and study the work statistics. Our framework provides fundamental insights and practical strategies for optimizing thermodynamic processes in open quantum systems.