Chiral state transfer along closed loops in the vicinity of an exceptional point is one of the many counterintuitive observations in non-Hermitian physics. The application of this property beyond proof-of-principle in quantum physics, is an open question. In this work, we demonstrate chiral state conversion between singlet and triplet Bell states through fully quantum Liouvillian dynamics. Crucially, we demonstrate that this property can be used for the chiral production of Bell states from separable states with a high fidelity and for a large range of parameters. Additionally, we show that the removal of quantum jumps from the dynamics through postselection can result in near-perfect Bell states from initially separable states. Our work presents the first application of chiral state transfer in quantum information processing and demonstrates a novel way to control entangled states by means of dissipation engineering.
Chiral state transfer along closed loops in the vicinity of an exceptional point is one of the many counterintuitive observations in non-Hermitian physics. The application of this property beyond proof-of-principle in quantum physics, is an open question. In this work, we demonstrate chiral state conversion between singlet and triplet Bell states through fully quantum Liouvillian dynamics. Crucially, we demonstrate that this property can be used for the chiral production of Bell states from separable states with a high fidelity and for a large range of parameters. Additionally, we show that the removal of quantum jumps from the dynamics through postselection can result in near-perfect Bell states from initially separable states. Our work presents the first application of chiral state transfer in quantum information processing and demonstrates a novel way to control entangled states by means of dissipation engineering.
We investigate chiral transfer and dissipative generation of even-parity Bell states in a two-qubit system with coherent two-photon driving and engineered two-photon loss. We find that adiabatic encirclement of a second-order exceptional point induces direction-dependent transfer between the Bell states ∣Φ+⟩ and ∣Φ−⟩, governed by a time-integrated low-loss branch-selection mechanism. We develop a hybrid-Liouvillian description with a control parameter q that interpolates between conditional no-jump dynamics and unconditional Lindblad evolution, and use it to assess how exceptional-point-induced chirality survives in the presence of quantum jumps. When the same parameter loop is initialized in the separable state ∣00⟩, it directly generates strong even-parity entanglement. Together, these results extend dissipative Bell-state control beyond the single-excitation manifold. They further demonstrate that exceptional-point-based protocols can unify chiral state transfer and entanglement generation within a single engineered two-photon platform.
We theoretically investigate the state evolution and decoherence of Bell states in a two-qubit system coupled to local bosonic thermal baths. By employing a hybrid Liouvillian formalism with a tuning parameter , we systematically explore the transition from purely non-Hermitian coherent evolution ( ) to complete Lindblad master equation dynamics ( ) in a bosonic environment. Our results demonstrate that at , dynamically encircling a second-order exceptional point (EP) enables a near-perfect chiral transfer between the Bell states and . This phenomenon is shown to be globally robust against variations in the bosonic thermal occupation numbers of the environment. However, the introduction of quantum jump processes ( ) significantly suppresses the directional selectivity, and the chirality completely disappears in the full Liouvillian limit ( ). Furthermore, we find that the dissipative protocol is unable to generate entanglement starting from a maximally mixed state, highlighting the role of initial state purity. This work elucidates the interplay between non-Hermitian topology and bosonic decoherence, providing insights for state evolution in realistic open quantum systems.
Dissipation, though often detrimental to quantum entanglement, can be manipulated for the preparation of entangled states, wherein ingeniously designed quantum jump processes drive the system toward the desired steady state. Here we venture beyond this paradigm, and demonstrate a new type of entanglement generation in dissipative quantum dynamics. Combining driven-dissipative steady-state engineering and adiabatic passage, we propose a general protocol where the final entangled state depends on the chirality of the evolution path in the parameter space, a scheme that is further extendable to multipartite entanglement. By simulating the Liouvillian dynamics through the quantum Langevin equation for a pair of photons, we experimentally confirm the noise-resistant chiral preparation of various entangled states with high fidelity and concurrence. Our work establishes parametric chiral dynamics as a scalable and robust tool for controllable entanglement generation, paving the way for its applications in quantum information.
Exceptional points emerge in the complex eigenspectra of non-Hermitian systems, and give rise to rich critical behaviors. An outstanding example is the chiral state transfer, where states can swap under an adiabatic encircling around the exceptional point, but only along one direction. In dissipative quantum systems, such exceptional-point encirclings are often accompanied by decoherence, whose impact is beyond the description of non-Hermitian Hamiltonians. In this paper, we study in detail the effects of dephasing on the encircling dynamics, adopting the full Lindblad master equation. Introducing experimentally relevant quantum-jump processes that account for dephasing, we show that gaps emerge in the eigenspectra landscape of the corresponding Liouvillian superoperator. It follows that the chiral state transfer does not take place in the adiabatic limit, since the system always adiabatically follows the quasisteady state of the Liouvillian regardless of the encircling direction. Nevertheless, the chirality is restored at intermediate encircling times, where the dynamics is nonadiabatic in both encircling directions, distinct from the typical chiral state transfer in non-Hermitian systems. While our results are applicable to several recent experiments, we examine a recent cold-atom experiment in particular, and show that the observed long-time chirality is limited to the special encircling path therein. Our paper provides further insight into the chiral state transfer under experimental conditions, and is helpful for controlling open-system dynamics from the perspective of non-Hermitian physics.
Adiabatic chiral state conversion (CSC) is one of the many counterintuitive effects associated with non-Hermitian physics. In quantum systems, numerous works have demonstrated this phenomenon under both non-Hermitian Hamiltonian and Lindblad evolution. However, despite considerable progress, the physical mechanism behind it has been a subject of debate. In this work, we present a unified framework that explains CSC in any non-Hermitian system, encompassing non-Hermitian Hamiltonian, Lindblad, and hybrid settings. Our framework relies on perturbative, non-adiabatic corrections to adiabatic evolution and consistently predicts CSC with only the lowest-order corrections. We demonstrate its efficacy with models of single and coupled dissipative qubits, obtaining analytical solutions for the conversion fidelity. Our analysis further reveals the role of non-perturbative dynamics, which can be present even in apparently slow trajectories. We show that this property can be utilised to considerably enhance state conversion. Finally, we demonstrate that CSC can be observed in a model without the presence of exceptional points.
Open quantum systems interacting with an environment exhibit dynamics described by the combination of dissipation and coherent Hamiltonian evolution. Taken together, these effects are captured by a Liouvillian superoperator. The degeneracies of the (generically non-Hermitian) Liouvillian are exceptional points, which are associated with critical dynamics as the system approaches steady state. We use a superconducting transmon circuit coupled to an engineered environment to observe two different types of Liouvillian exceptional points that arise either from the interplay of energy loss and decoherence or purely due to decoherence. By dynamically tuning the Liouvillian superoperators in real time we observe a non-Hermiticity-induced chiral state transfer. Our study motivates a new look at open quantum system dynamics from the vantage of Liouvillian exceptional points, enabling applications of non-Hermitian dynamics in the understanding and control of open quantum systems.