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arXiv:2002.03702

Exact solution for the quantum Rabi model with the $\boldsymbol{\mathsf{A}}^{2}$ term

И. Д. Феранчук, N. Q. San, A. U. Leonau, O. D. Skoromnik

Published Feb 10, 2020• 0 citations
arXivHTMLPDF

Abstract

Quantum Rabi model (QRM) is widely used for the analysis of the radiation-matter interaction at the fundamental level in cavity quantum electrodynamics. Typically the QRM Hamiltonian includes only $\boldsymbol{\mathsf{p}} \cdot \boldsymbol{\mathsf{A}}$ term, however, the complete nonrelativistic Hamiltonian of quantum electrodynamics includes $\boldsymbol{\mathsf{A}}^{2}$ term as well. Here we find an exact solution and demonstrate with the help of the exact canonical transformations that the QRM Hamiltonian with the $\boldsymbol{\mathsf{A}}^{2}$ term (QRMA) is reduced to the standard QRM model Hamiltonian with the renormalized frequency and the coupling constant and the eigenstates are expressed through the squeezed states of the field. As a result, the $\boldsymbol{\mathsf{A}}^{2}$ term qualitatively changes the behavior of the QRM with purely electromagnetic interaction in the strong coupling regime: the value of the ground state energy of an atom inside the cavity is higher than in vacuum and the number of crossing of energy levels with different quantum numbers decreases.

DOI
10.48550/arxiv.2002.03702

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Exact solution for the quantum Rabi model with the A2\boldsymbol{\mathsf{A}}^{2}A2 term
Quantum Rabi model (QRM) is widely used for the analysis of the radiation-matter interaction at the fundamental level in cavity quantum electrodynamics. Typically the QRM Hamiltonian includes only p⋅A\boldsymbol{\mathsf{p}} \cdot \boldsymbol{\mathsf{A}}p⋅A term, however, the complete nonrelativistic Hamiltonian of quantum electrodynamics includes A2\boldsymbol{\mathsf{A}}^{2}A2 term as well. Here we find an exact solution and demonstrate with the help of the exact canonical transformations that the QRM Hamiltonian with the A2\boldsymbol{\mathsf{A}}^{2}A2 term (QRMA) is reduced to the standard QRM model Hamiltonian with the renormalized frequency and the coupling constant and the eigenstates are expressed through the squeezed states of the field. As a result, the A2\boldsymbol{\mathsf{A}}^{2}A2 term qualitatively changes the behavior of the QRM with purely electromagnetic interaction in the strong coupling regime: the value of the ground state energy of an atom inside the cavity is higher than in vacuum and the number of crossing of energy levels with different quantum numbers decreases.
Abstract It is well known that the A-square term must be considered in both cavity and circuit quantum electrodynamics systems, because it arises in the derivation from the minimal coupling Hamiltonian at any finite coupling strength. In this paper, we study the quantum Rabi model with A-square terms using the Bogoliubov operator approach. After a unitary transformation, the A-square terms can be eliminated, resulting in a modified quantum Rabi model with renormalized parameters. A transcendental function responsible for the exact solution is then derived. The presence of the A-square terms is found to significantly alter the energy spectrum. The dynamics are also studied using the obtained exact wave function, which is sensitive to the strength of the A-square terms at strong coupling. We believe that these results could be observed in future light–matter interaction systems in the ultra-strong and deep strong coupling regimes.
The quantum Rabi model (QRM) is a cornerstone in the study of light-matter interactions within cavity and circuit quantum electrodynamics (QED). It effectively captures the dynamics of a two-level system coupled to a single-mode resonator, serving as a foundation for understanding quantum optical phenomena in a great variety of systems. However, this model may produce inaccurate results for large coupling strengths, even in systems with high anharmonicity. Moreover, issues of gauge invariance further undermine its reliability. In this work, we introduce a renormalized QRM that incorporates the effective influence of higher atomic energy levels, providing a significantly more accurate representation of the system while still maintaining a two-level description. To demonstrate the versatility of this approach, we present two different examples: an atom in a double-well potential and a superconducting artificial atom (fluxonium qubit). This procedure opens new possibilities for precisely engineering and understanding cavity and circuit QED systems, which are highly sought-after, especially for quantum information processing. The quantum Rabi model is widely used to describe how light interacts with atoms or artificial atoms in cavities and circuits, but it often becomes inaccurate in modern strong-coupling experiments. The authors introduce a renormalized version that accounts for higher atomic levels while keeping a simple two-level picture, greatly improving accuracy.
The quantum Rabi model (QRM), describing a two-level system coupled to a quantum harmonic oscillator, is one of the simplest and most ubiquitous interaction models in quantum mechanics. Despite its simplicity, the QRM has found applications in various fields of physics. The most exciting realization of the QRM nowadays is arguably the circuit quantum electrodynamics (QED) system, where an on-chip artificial atom (or a qubit) is coupled to a transmission line or a waveguide. The qubits in circuit QED systems contain a bias term, which breaks the Z_2 symmetry in the QRM. Therefore, the precise model realized in circuit QED systems is referred to as the asymmetric quantum Rabi model (AQRM). This thesis explores theoretical methods to treat the AQRM and develops a complete approach to describe its energy landscape. The hidden symmetry of the AQRM is investigated in detail, and seen to be a rather general phenomenon in light-matter interaction models. The equivalence between the generalised Poschl-Teller potential and the spectrum of the AQRM is also established. Chapter 1 is dedicated to reviewing the analytic solutions and conventional approximations to the QRM/AQRM. Regarding the analytic solutions, the analytic results in terms of the transcendental functions determining the eigenspectrum of the AQRM are collected. Special emphasis is placed on the isolated closed-form exceptional solutions to the AQRM. Due to the lack of simple closed-form expressions for the general eigenvalues, some well-known approximations are considered. In Chapter 2, a generalised adiabatic approximation (GAA) is developed to calculate the eigenvalues of the excited states of the QRM and apply it to the AQRM. The GAA is based on the similarity between the exact exceptional solutions and the Laguerre polynomials. By construction, the GAA always has exact exceptional energy and approximates the regular spectrum with rather good agreement in a large parameter regime. Furthermore, the GAA is applied to the AQRM and shown to correctly recover the conical intersections in the energy landscape. The geometric phases around these conical intersections are calculated analytically as an illustrative example. In Chapter 3, a physically motivated variational wave function is presented for the ground state of the AQRM. The wave function is a weighted superposition of squeezed coherent states entangled with non-orthogonal qubit states and relies only on three variational parameters in the regimes of interest. The variational expansion describes the ground state remarkably well in almost all parameter regimes, especially with arbitrary bias. The results show that the variational expansion is a significant improvement over the existing approximations for the AQRM. In Chapter 4, the hidden symmetry and tunnelling dynamics in the AQRM and several related models are analysed in detail. The AQRM has a broken Z_2 symmetry, with generally a non-degenerate eigenvalue spectrum. In some special cases of the related models, stable level crossings typical of the Z_2-symmetric quantum Rabi model are recovered. It is thus shown that this hidden symmetry is not limited to the AQRM, but exists in various related light-matter interaction models. In Chapter 5, starting with the Gaudin-like Bethe ansatz equations associated with the quasi-exactly solved (QES) exceptional points of the AQRM, a spectral equivalence is established with QES hyperbolic Schrodinger potentials. This leads to particular QES Poschl-Teller potentials. The complete spectral equivalence is then established between the AQRM and generalised Poschl-Teller potentials. Conclusions and future directions are presented in the final Chapter 6.
The quantum Rabi model (QRM) is a cornerstone in the study of light-matter interactions within cavity and circuit quantum electrodynamics (QED). It effectively captures the dynamics of a two-level system coupled to a single-mode resonator, serving as a foundation for understanding quantum optical phenomena in a great variety of systems. However, this model may produce inaccurate results for large coupling strengths, even in systems with high anharmonicity. Moreover, issues of gauge invariance further undermine its reliability. In this work, we introduce a renormalized QRM that incorporates the effective influence of higher atomic energy levels, providing a significantly more accurate representation of the system while still maintaining a two-level description. To demonstrate the versatility of this approach, we present two different examples: an atom in a double-well potential and a superconducting artificial atom (fluxonium qubit). This procedure opens new possibilities for precisely engineering and understanding cavity and circuit QED systems, which are highly sought-after, especially for quantum information processing.
The analytical exact solutions to the mixed quantum Rabi model (QRM) including both one- and two-photon terms are found by using Bogoliubov operators. Transcendental functions in terms of 4 × 4 determinants responsible for the exact solutions are derived. These so-called G-functions with pole structures can be reduced to the previous ones in the unmixed QRMs. The zeros of G-functions reproduce completely the regular spectra. The exceptional eigenvalues can also be obtained by another transcendental function. From the pole structure, we can derive two energy limits when the two-photon coupling strength tends to the collapse point. All energy levels only collapse to the lower one, which diverges negatively. The level crossings in the unmixed QRMs are relaxed to avoided crossings in the present mixed QRM due to absence of parity symmetry. In the weak two-photon coupling regime, the mixed QRM is equivalent to an one-photon QRM with an effective positive bias, suppressed photon frequency and enhanced one-photon coupling, which may pave a highly efficient and economic way to access the deep-strong one-photon coupling regime.
The prototypical system constituted by a two-level atom interacting with a quantized single-mode electromagnetic field is described by the quantum Rabi model (QRM). The QRM is potentially valid at any light-matter interaction regime, ranging from the weak (where the decay rates exceeds the coupling rate) to the deep strong coupling (where the interaction rate exceeds the bare transition frequencies of the subsystems). However, when reaching the ultrastrong coupling regime, several theoretical issues may prevent the correct description of the observable dynamics of such a system: (i) the standard quantum optics master equation fails to correctly describe the interaction of this system with the reservoirs; (ii) the correct output photon rate is no longer proportional to the intracavity photon number; and (iii) they appear to violate gauge invariance. Here, we study the photon flux emission rate of this system under the incoherent excitation of the two-level atom for any light-matter interaction strength and consider different effective temperatures. The dependence of the emission spectra on the coupling strength is the result of the interplay between energy levels, matrix elements of the observables, and the density of states of the reservoirs. Within this approach, we also study the occurrence of light-matter decoupling in the deep strong-coupling regime and show how all of the obtained results are gauge invariant.