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arXiv:2607.25427

A General First- and Second-Order Numerical Solver for Non-Markovian Quantum State Diffusion

Zhenning Cai, Quanhui Zhu

quant-phmath.NASubmitted Jul 28, 2026• Announced Jul 29, 2026• 0 citations
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Abstract

The numerical simulation of non-Markovian open quantum systems based on the non-Markovian quantum state diffusion (NMQSD) equation is complicated by functional derivatives with respect to the stochastic process. A general numerical framework that directly treats these functional derivatives without relying on prescribed decompositions of the bath correlation function is still lacking. In this work, we derive an analytical solution of the linear NMQSD equation that reveals three elementary structures of the non-Markovian stochastic dynamics: stochastic propagation, functional-derivative insertion, and memory pairing. Based on this structure, we construct a general auxiliary-state framework for arbitrary bath correlation functions. The framework separates the numerical construction into time discretization, memory quadrature, and hierarchy truncation. We then construct first- and second-order schemes and provide diagrammatic transition rules for their explicit implementation. Numerical results verify the expected temporal accuracy and demonstrate the applicability of the proposed methods to different bath correlation functions and multi-level quantum systems.

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The numerical simulation of non-Markovian open quantum systems based on the non-Markovian quantum state diffusion (NMQSD) equation is complicated by functional derivatives with respect to the stochastic process. A general numerical framework that directly treats these functional derivatives without relying on prescribed decompositions of the bath correlation function is still lacking. In this work, we derive an analytical solution of the linear NMQSD equation that reveals three elementary structures of the non-Markovian stochastic dynamics: stochastic propagation, functional-derivative insertion, and memory pairing. Based on this structure, we construct a general auxiliary-state framework for arbitrary bath correlation functions. The framework separates the numerical construction into time discretization, memory quadrature, and hierarchy truncation. We then construct first- and second-order schemes and provide diagrammatic transition rules for their explicit implementation. Numerical results verify the expected temporal accuracy and demonstrate the applicability of the proposed methods to different bath correlation functions and multi-level quantum systems.
To find a practical scheme to numerically solve the non-Markovian Quantum State Diffusion equation (NMQSD), one often uses a functional expansion of the functional derivative that appears in the general NMQSD equation. This expansion leads to a hierarchy of coupled operators. It turned out that if one takes only the zeroth order term into account, one has a very efficient method that agrees remarkably well with the exact results for many cases of interest. We denote this approach as zeroth order functional expansion (ZOFE). In the present work, we investigate two extensions of ZOFE. Firstly, we investigate how the hierarchy converges when taking higher orders into account (which, however, leads to a fast increase in numerical size). Secondly, we demonstrate that by using a terminator that approximates the higher order contributions, one can obtain significant improvement, at hardly any additional computational cost. We carry out our investigations for the case of absorption spectra of molecular aggregates.
Two perturbation methods for the non-Markovian quantum state diffusion (NMQSD) equation are investigated in this paper. The first perturbation method under investigation is based on a functional expansion of the NMQSD equation, while the second expands the NMQSD equation in terms of coupling strength between the system and its environment. We compare the two perturbation methods by solving the dynamics of a bipartite system in which the two perturbation methods can be compared with the exact NMQSD equation. In addition, as an application, we provide an analytical solution for a special family of the systemʼs initial states, and discuss the entanglement dynamics based on this solution.
Based on the path integral approach, we derive a new realization of the exact non-Markovian stochastic Schrödinger equation (SSE). The main difference from the previous non-Markovian quantum state diffusion (NMQSD) method is that the complex Gaussian stochastic process used for the forward propagation of the wave function is correlated, which may be used to reduce the amplitude of the non-Markovian memory term at high temperatures. The new SSE is then written into the recently developed hierarchy of pure states scheme, in a form that is more closely related to the hierarchical equation of motion approach. Numerical simulations are then performed to demonstrate the efficiency of the new method.
Based on the stochastic unravelling of the reduced density operator in the Feynman path integral formalism for an open quantum system in touch with harmonic environments, a new non-Markovian stochastic Schrödinger equation (NMSSE) has been established that allows for the systematic perturbation expansion in the system-bath coupling to arbitrary order. This NMSSE can be transformed in a facile manner into the other two NMSSEs, i.e., non-Markovian quantum state diffusion and time-dependent wavepacket diffusion method. Benchmarked by numerically exact results, we have conducted a comparative study of the proposed method in its lowest order approximation, with perturbative quantum master equations in the symmetric spin-boson model and the realistic Fenna-Matthews-Olson complex. It is found that our method outperforms the second-order time-convolutionless quantum master equation in the whole parameter regime and even far better than the fourth-order in the slow bath and high temperature cases. Besides, the method is applicable on an equal footing for any kind of spectral density function and is expected to be a powerful tool to explore the quantum dynamics of large-scale systems, benefiting from the wavefunction framework and the time-local appearance within a single stochastic trajectory.
Developing general-purpose numerical methods for non-Markovian quantum state diffusion has long been a challenge in the simulation of open quantum systems. This paper proposes a deterministic polynomial chaos Galerkin method, which is easy to implement, accurate, and efficient. By combining a low-rank decomposition of bath correlations with Galerkin projection onto a polynomial chaos basis, the method yields a deterministic formulation compatible with standard numerical solvers for partial differential equations. The reduced density matrix is obtained from a single deterministic solve at a cost comparable to that of computing one stochastic hierarchy trajectory. Replacing an ensemble of NtrajN_{\mathrm{traj}}Ntraj​ trajectories therefore reduces the computational cost by approximately a factor of NtrajN_{\mathrm{traj}}Ntraj​ and eliminates statistical sampling error. Benchmark comparisons show that the proposed method achieves smaller errors at lower computational cost than the tested stochastic hierarchy methods. Applications involving nonquadratic potentials, diffraction and interference, and coupled three-dimensional dynamics demonstrate its ability to handle challenging problems.
We propose and analyze a novel numerical framework for the non-Markovian stochastic Schrödinger equation (NMSSE) based on a low-rank approximation of the bath correlation functions. By decomposing the memory kernel into a finite-dimensional representation, we derive a truncated system of hierarchical equations that effectively balances computational tractability with physical fidelity. A rigorous convergence analysis is established for the hierarchical framework under mild assumptions. We demonstrate that our formulation serves as a mathematical generalization of the Hierarchy of Pure States (HOPS), encompassing it as a special case while offering a more flexible representation of non-Markovian effects. Numerical experiments across several benchmark models are presented to illustrate the validity and efficacy of the proposed method.