We study a system of two quadratically-coupled harmonic oscillators, prepared respectively in the ground state and in a coherent state. This toy model can describe for instance the dynamics of one mode of a quantum field evolving in a harmonically-oscillating classical background. In such situations, it is well-known that, depending on the background oscillation amplitude and coupling strength, the system may exhibit parametric resonance. Using the Feynman-Vernon influence functional, we analyze the interplay between parametric resonance and quantum entanglement by perturbatively computing the purity of the mixed state resulting from tracing over one of the oscillators. We find a runaway behavior of the quantum entanglement between the two oscillators, as well as a rapid breakdown of the validity of perturbation theory, in regions of parametric instability. This provides a quantitative confirmation of various statements in the literature and is highly relevant to questions pertaining to the validity of the semiclassical approximation in coupled quantum-classical systems.
We study a system of two quadratically-coupled harmonic oscillators, prepared respectively in the ground state and in a coherent state. This toy model can describe for instance the dynamics of one mode of a quantum field evolving in a harmonically-oscillating classical background. In such situations, it is well-known that, depending on the background oscillation amplitude and coupling strength, the system may exhibit parametric resonance. Using the Feynman-Vernon influence functional, we analyze the interplay between parametric resonance and quantum entanglement by perturbatively computing the purity of the mixed state resulting from tracing over one of the oscillators. We find a runaway behavior of the quantum entanglement between the two oscillators, as well as a rapid breakdown of the validity of perturbation theory, in regions of parametric instability. This provides a quantitative confirmation of various statements in the literature and is highly relevant to questions pertaining to the validity of the semiclassical approximation in coupled quantum-classical systems.
We investigate the quantum entanglement dynamics of two coupled harmonic oscillators with a time-dependent interaction. Using the Lewis-Riesenfeld invariant method, we derive the exact analytical wave functions without any perturbative or adiabatic approximations and combine this with a phase-space analysis using the Wigner function to provide a complete description of the system's quantum state evolution. We obtain general expression form for the purity and the linear entropy SL=1−P for arbitrary excitation numbers (n,m), allows a systematic study of entanglement for a large class of quantum states. We show that the entanglement dynamics is very sensitive to the interplay between the detuning parameters θ and ϑ2, the frequency parameter β0 and the coupling strength ε: the increase of detuning takes the system from slow irregular oscillations to fast and regular periodic behavior, and the stronger coupling systematically enhances both the amplitude and the average value of the linear entropy. Most importantly, for the resonance case ω1=ω2=1 and strong couplings ε≈0.99, the system shows robust undamped synchronized periodic oscillations of the linear entropy for all quantum states considered, indicating preserved quantum coherence without saturation. Our findings demonstrate that linear entropy is a sensitive and practical entanglement witness, and we establish explicit analytical relations between the coupling parameters of the system and its entanglement properties, which are directly relevant to quantum information processing and the control of quantum correlations in continuous-variable systems.
Some of the most enduring questions in physics--including the quantum measurement problem and the quantization of gravity--involve the interaction of a quantum system with a classical environment. Two linearly coupled harmonic oscillators provide a simple, exactly soluble model for exploring such interaction. Even the ground state of a pair of identical oscillators exhibits effects on the quantum nature of one oscillator, e.g., a diminution of position uncertainty, and an increase in momentum uncertainty and uncertainty product, from their unperturbed values. Interaction between quantum and classical oscillators is simulated by constructing a quantum state with one oscillator initially in its ground state, the other in a coherent or Glauber state. The subsequent wave function for this state is calculated exactly, both for identical and distinct oscillators. The reduced probability distribution for the quantum oscillator, and its position and momentum expectation values and uncertainties, are obtained from this wave function. The oscillator acquires an oscillation amplitude corresponding to a beating between the normal modes of the system; the behavior of the position and momentum uncertainties can become quite complicated. For oscillators with equal unperturbed frequencies, i.e., at resonance, the uncertainties exhibit a time-dependent quantum squeezing which can be extreme.
We study the parametric resonance in a system of two coupled quantum harmonic oscillators when the frequency of one of them (describing the field mode) is modulated at exactly twice the unperturbed eigenfrequency (the case of 'unshifted resonance'). The coordinate–momentum coupling between the two oscillators is chosen in order to simulate the dynamical Casimir effect in a cavity containing a harmonic oscillator detector (LC-contour). Analytical solutions are obtained with the aid of the multiple scales method. For the field mode and detector initially prepared in thermal squeezed states, we calculate the mean numbers of quanta in both modes, as well as the invariant squeezing coefficients, purity and photon distribution functions, analyzing the influence of coupling strength and frequency modulation depth on the dynamics of these quantities. We show that the system goes to strongly squeezed states even for high temperature initial states of the detector. Depending on the relative strength of coupling coefficient and the parametric modulation amplitude, initially separable states go to permanently entangled states or they show periodic appearance and disappearance of entanglement.
Using the Wigner function in phase space, we study quantum steering and entanglement between two coupled harmonic oscillators. We derive expressions for purity and quantum steering in both directions and identify several important selection rules. Our results extend the work reported in {\color{blue} [Phys. Rev. E 97, 042203 (2018)]} focused on the weak coupling regime, revealing significant deviations in the ultra-strong coupling regime. In particular, Makarov's prediction of a separable ground state contrasts with our exact calculations, highlighting the limitations of his approach under strong coupling conditions. We show that quantum steering between excited oscillators is completely absent even in the ultra-strong coupling regime. Similarly, resonant oscillators have no steering, and ground states cannot steer any receiver state. We find that quantum steering becomes notably more pronounced as the system approaches resonance and within specific ranges of ultra-strong coupling. This behavior is marked by a clear asymmetry, where steering is present in only one direction, highlighting the delicate balance of interaction strengths that govern the emergence of quantum correlations. These results advance our understanding of how excitation levels and coupling strengths influence quantum steering and entanglement in coupled harmonic oscillators.
We study the relationship between entanglement and parametric resonance in a system of two coupled time-dependent oscillators. As a measure of bipartite entanglement, we calculate the linear entropy for the reduced density operator, from which we study the entanglement dynamics. In particular, we find that the bipartite entanglement increases in time up to a maximal mixing scenario, when the set of auxiliary dynamical parameters are under parametric resonance. Moreover, we obtain a closed relationship between the correlations in the ground state, the localization of the Wigner function in phase space, and the localization of the wave function of the total system.
We investigate new features, especially of entanglement dynamics, which arise in a quantum-classical hybrid. As a model, we study the coupling between two quantum mechanical two-level systems, i.e. two q-bits, and a classical harmonic oscillator. Their interaction is described by a hybrid coupling, in accordance with a recently developed quantum-classical hybrid theory. We discuss various situations in which entanglement of the q-bits does (not) evolve. Furthermore, we point out an experimental application in a hybrid cooling scheme and indicate topics for future study.