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arXiv:2007.09896 · Physical Review A

Non-Markovian channel from the reduced dynamics of a coin in a quantum walk

Javid Naikoo, Subhashish Banerjee, C. M. Chandrashekar

Published Dec 15, 2020• 18 citations
arXivHTMLPDF

Abstract

The quantum channels with memory, known as non-Markovian channels, are of crucial importance for a realistic description of a variety of physical systems, and pave ways for new methods of decoherence control by manipulating the properties of an environment such as its frequency spectrum. In this work, the reduced dynamics of a coin in a discrete-time quantum walk is characterized as a non-Markovian quantum channel. A general formalism is sketched to extract the Kraus operators for a $t$-step quantum walk. Non-Markovianity, in the sense of P indivisibility of the reduced coin dynamics, is inferred from the nonmonotonous behavior of distinguishability of two orthogonal states subjected to it. Furthermore, we study various quantum information-theoretic quantities of a qubit under the action of this channel, putting in perspective the role such channels can play in various quantum information processing tasks.

DOI
10.1103/physreva.102.062209

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The quantum channels with memory, known as non-Markovian channels, are of crucial importance for a realistic description of a variety of physical systems, and pave ways for new methods of decoherence control by manipulating the properties of an environment such as its frequency spectrum. In this work, the reduced dynamics of a coin in a discrete-time quantum walk is characterized as a non-Markovian quantum channel. A general formalism is sketched to extract the Kraus operators for a ttt-step quantum walk. Non-Markovianity, in the sense of P indivisibility of the reduced coin dynamics, is inferred from the nonmonotonous behavior of distinguishability of two orthogonal states subjected to it. Furthermore, we study various quantum information-theoretic quantities of a qubit under the action of this channel, putting in perspective the role such channels can play in various quantum information processing tasks.
Non-Markovian quantum effects are typically observed in systems interacting with structured reservoirs. Discrete-time quantum walks are prime example of such systems in which, quantum memory arises due to the controlled interaction between the coin and position degrees of freedom. Here we show that the information backflow that quantifies memory effects can be enhanced when the particle is subjected to uncorrelated static or dynamic disorder. The presence of disorder in the system leads to localization effects in 1-dimensional quantum walks. We shown that it is possible to infer about the nature of localization in position space by monitoring the information backflow in the reduced system. Further, we study other useful properties of quantum walk such as entanglement, interference and its connection to quantum non-Markovianity.
In the case of the discrete time coined quantum walk the reduced dynamics of the coin shows non-Markovian recurrence features due to information back-flow from the position degree of freedom. Here we study how this non-Markovian behavior is modified in the presence of open system dynamics. In the process, we obtain useful insights into the nature of non-Markovian physics. In particular, we show that in the case of (non-Markovian) random telegraph noise (RTN), a further discernbile recurrence feature is present in the dynamics. Moreover, this feature is correlated with the localization of the walker. On the other hand, no additional recurruence feature appears for other non-Markovian types of noise (Ornstein-Uhlenbeck and Power Law noise). We propose a power spectral method for comparing the relative strengths of the non-Markovian component due to the external noise and that due to the internal position degree of freedom.
Understanding whether the features of open quantum dynamics are genuinely quantum remains a central challenge in quantum dynamics. Even though the non-Markovian behavior of quantum dynamics has been widely investigated across different settings, there is still no consensus on which properties of a dynamics reflect genuine quantum features and which arise from classical or non-genuine quantum sources. In this review, we provide detailed information on recent developments in characterizing quantum non-Markovianity based on information backflow and the nature of its origin. We also present a survey on how various approaches separate classical and quantum contributions, as well as how they define operational tasks that reveal genuine quantum non-Markovianity. We analyze several frameworks, including state-distinguishability -based, channel-based (``CP-divisibility''), and process-tensor methods. For each framework, we outline the underlying physical motivation, the criteria proposed to distinguish genuine quantum non-Markovianity from practical or apparent memory effects. We further compare different approaches and their strengths and limitations. The review aims to clarify the conceptual and operational aspects of quantum non-Markovian processes based on their nature and to provide a foundation for future research on quantum non-Markovianity and its role in advancing quantum information science and technology.
Abstract We study discrete quantum dynamics where a single evolution step consists of unitary system transformation followed by decoherence via coupling to an environment. Often, non-Markovian memory effects are attributed to structured environments, whereas, here, we take a more general approach within a discrete setting. In addition of controlling the structure of the environment, we are interested in how local unitaries on the open system allow the appearance and control of memory effects. Our first simple qubit model where local unitary is followed by dephasing illustrates how memory effects arise, despite having no structure in the environment the system is coupled with. We, then, elaborate on this observation by constructing a model for an open quantum walk where the unitary coin and transfer operation is augmented with the dephasing of the coin. The results demonstrate tha,t in the limit of strong dephasing within each evolution step, the combined coin-position open system always displays memory effects, and their quantities are independent of the structure of the environment. Our construction makes possible an experimentally realizable open quantum walk with photons exhibiting non-Markovian features.
Quantum non-Markovianity of a quantum noisy channel is typically identified with information backflow or, more generally, with departure of the intermediate map from complete positivity. But here, we also indicate certain non-Markovian channels that cannot be witnessed by the CP-divisibility criterion. In complex systems, non-Markovianity becomes more involved on account of subsystem dynamics. Here we study various facets of non-Markovian evolution, in the context of coined quantum walks, with particular stress on disambiguating the internal vs. environmental contributions to non-Markovian backflow. For the above problem of disambiguation, we present a general power-spectral technique based on a distinguishability measure such as trace-distance or correlation measure such as mutual information. We also study various facets of quantum correlations in the transition from quantum to classical random walks, under the considered non-Markovian noise models. The potential for the application of this analysis to the quantum statistical dynamics of complex systems is indicated.
A profound understanding of decoherence and dissipation in quantum dynamics is crucial for the realistic modeling of the evolution of quantum systems. In open quantum dynamics one distinguishes between a memoryless, so-called Markovian evolution and dynamics incorporating memory effects, termed non-Markovian. In this work we study how prevalent memory effects are in the set of all such dynamics. We thus investigate how often a Markovian description is applicable. This question is approached by investigating randomly generated two-step qubit dynamics with respect to different concepts and witnesses of non-Markovianity. We observe that almost all dynamics are non-Markovian, and only a small (yet finite) fraction is Markovian. Furthermore, we study how this proportion changes when considering certain subclasses such as lower rank or mixed-unitary dynamics. Importantly, our results shed light on the relative ratios of -- and interrelations between -- the sets of dynamics that are non-Markovian with respect to different criteria. Finally, we investigate the fraction of dynamics in which the memory effects are necessarily of quantum nature and establish a connection between two recently developed concepts that characterize the quantumness of memory in non-Markovian dynamics.