Challenges
Datasets
Workspaces
Papers
Discussions
Leaderboard
Log inSign up
Challenges
Datasets
Workspaces
Papers
Discussions
Leaderboard
Blog
Job Board
Q3AS

© 2026 Aqora Quantum S.A.S.

TermsPrivacyLegal Notice

Machine learning-enhanced characterisation of open quantum dynamics

Jessica Barr

Published Oct 1, 2026• 0 citations
Publisher

Abstract

Spectral densities encode essential information that characterises the interaction between a system and its environment in an open-quantum system problem. This information is crucial for determining the system's dynamics. In this work, we leverage the potential of machine learning techniques to reconstruct the features of the environment. Specifically, we show that, given the time evolution of a system observable, an artificial neural network can infer the main features of the spectral density. Firstly, for relevant examples of exactly solvable and weakly-coupled spin-boson models, we demonstrate that the neural network can classify the Ohmicity parameter of the environment as either Ohmic, sub-Ohmic, or super-Ohmic, with high accuracy, effectively distinguishing between different forms of dissipation. Additionally, we extend our approach to a regression task, where the neural network accurately predicts continuous values of the Ohmicity parameter, the coupling strength and the cut-off frequency, providing a comprehensive characterisation of the spectral density. Furthermore, to address scenarios beyond the weak coupling regime, we employ the reaction coordinate mapping. For a dissipative spin-boson model with a structured spectral density comprising one, two, or three Lorentzian peaks, we demonstrate that a neural network can classify the spectral density based on the number of peaks and accurately predict their positions. The methodology developed in this thesis, along with the case studies analysed, demonstrates the effectiveness of machine learning techniques for characterising environments with arbitrary spectral densities across a broad range of coupling regimes.

DOI
10.17034/32641485

Related papers

Spectral density classification for environment spectroscopy

J Barr, Giorgio Zicari, Alessandro Ferraro +1 more

Abstract Spectral densities encode the relevant information characterizing the system–environment interaction in an open-quantum system problem. Such information is key to determining the system’s dynamics. In this work, we leverage the potential of machine learning techniques to reconstruct the features of the environment. Specifically, we show that the time evolution of a system observable can be used by an artificial neural network to infer the main features of the spectral density. In particular, for relevant examples of spin-boson models, we can classify with high accuracy the Ohmicity parameter of the environment as either Ohmic, sub-Ohmic or super-Ohmic, thereby distinguishing between different forms of dissipation.

arXiv:2308.00831•Machine Learning Science and Technology•Feb 26, 2024•18 citations

Learning spectral density functions in open quantum systems

Felipe Peleteiro, João Victor Shiguetsugo Kawanami Lima, Pedro Marcelo Prado +2 more

Spectral density functions quantify how environmental modes couple to quantum systems and govern their open dynamics. Inferring such frequency-dependent functions from time-domain measurements is an ill-conditioned inverse problem. Here, we use exactly solvable spin-boson models with pure-dephasing and amplitude-damping channels to reconstruct spectral density functions from noisy simulated data. First, we introduce a parameter estimation approach based on machine learning regressors to infer Lorentzian and Ohmic-like spectral density parameters, quantifying robustness to noise. Second, we show that a cosine transform inversion yields a physics-consistent spectral prior estimation, which is refined by a constrained neural network enforcing positivity and correct asymptotic behaviour. Our neural network framework robustly reconstructs structured spectral densities by filtering simulated noisy signals and learning general functional dependencies.

quant-pharXiv:2602.24056•Physical Review A•Mar 2, 2026•0 citations

Machine Learning-Based Characterisation of the Non-Markovian Dynamics of a Nitrogen-Vacancy Centre

Tom Lannon, Mauro Paternostro, John Martin Gregg +1 more

The interaction between a quantum system and its environment can be characterized by the spectral density function: knowing its structure is important for optimizing applications of quantum technologies such as quantum sensing protocols. In this work, we present the first experimental demonstration of a machine learning-based reconstruction of reaction-coordinate spectral density parameters from NV centre Rabi dynamics. Unlike the previous work, we recover all spectral density parameters rather than only the central frequency, and benchmark the performance of the neural network against the Cramér-Rao bound and maximum likelihood estimator. Our results demonstrate that the model predicted by the neural network can reliably reproduce the NV dynamics over the estimation window, and can produce estimates for some parameters with variances comparable to that of maximum likelihood.

quant-pharXiv:2608.27632•Aug 31, 2026•0 citations

Machine learning non-Markovian two-level quantum noise spectroscopy

Juan M. Scarpetta, John Henry Reina, Morten Hjorth-Jensen

We develop machine learning models for the automated characterization of quantum noise spectroscopy for non-Hermitian two-level systems. We use the Random Forest, Support Vector, and Feedforward Neural Network regression algorithms to perform a highly accurate regression of the two-level system-bath coupling strength. High accuracy Ohmicity classification was implemented to provide a complete characterization of the spectral density function. We define a time-averaged trace-distance metric to feed the machine learning algorithms, which, together with numerically exact populations as inputs, produce a highly accurate non-Markovian regression spanning the transition from fast to slow baths and from weak to strong coupling regimes of the interaction. The dynamics database of the non-Hermitian systems has been built up within the independent spin-boson and pure dephasing model.

arXiv:2506.06555•Physical Review Research•Nov 8, 2025•5 citations

Open quantum system theory from an information perspective

Oliver Kaestle

Theoretical investigations of open quantum systems have uncovered a wide variety of unique dynamical phenomena. For instance, current research in quantum information technology aims to control and utilize time-delayed system-reservoir interactions and phonon-induced dynamical dissipative processes for the design of novel chip-integrated quantum optical devices. This thesis develops and advances multiple theoretical approaches for the accurate and efficient description of open quantum systems, where a high degree of information compression is essential to extract crucial information from the open system degrees of freedom which scale exponentially with the system size. The presented methods range from correlation expansions to second-order perturbative master equations, real-time path integral formulations, numerical realizations of high-dimensional tensor networks and, based on the most recent theoretical developments, machine learning implementations in the form of artificial neural networks. We explore all of these techniques with respect to their compression efficiency, performance and representational limits by applying them to a variety of physical setups and scenarios. Firstly, emerging non-Markovian memory effects in open quantum systems are investigated, e.g., resulting from interactions with a structured phonon environment or time-discrete coherent quantum feedback, leading to information exchange and a time-delayed dynamical interplay between system and reservoir. Examined systems range from solid state p-wave topological superconductors coupled to a structured phonon environment, where a memory-induced stabilization and recovery of topological properties is observed, to semiconductor quantum dot nanostructures exhibiting complete population inversion and unidirectional quantum transport as a result of dissipation-induced non-Markovian system-reservoir interactions, and quantum emitters simultaneously subjected to coherent quantum feedback and a decoherence-inducing structured phonon reservoir, leading to the formation of dynamical dissipative structures and population trapping. Secondly, novel machine learning techniques based on artificial neural networks are investigated, enabling simulations of symmetric open quantum spin-1/2 systems with Markovian dynamics. Combining their potential for parallelization and efficient Hilbert space truncation, they facilitate unmatched degrees of information compression and numerical performance for large systems. In this thesis, we expand the representational limits of the restricted Boltzmann machine neural network architecture by developing novel hybrid sampling strategies for a highly customizable compression of configuration space, rendering accurate and efficient simulations of asymmetric systems feasible. Finally, the applicability of the neural network is extended beyond pure spin-1/2 systems by introducing a neural bit encoding scheme for Fock number states, facilitating high performing calculations of large hybrid open quantum systems with bosonic degrees of freedom.

•Jan 1, 2021•0 citations

Simulation, characterisation and control of open quantum systems dynamics

Giorgio Zicari

In this thesis, we discuss aspects of the simulation, characterisation, and control of the dynamics of open quantum systems. The latter are systems governed by quantum mechanical laws and interacting with an environment, which is typically much larger than the system itself. According to the standard approach, one is usually able to perform a suitable average over the environmental degrees of freedom, resulting in an effective description of the main system dynamics, which accounts for the effects of the interaction with the surroundings. In standard scenarios, usually studied within the so-called Born-Markov approximation, the system-environment coupling is weak and such that we can perform a neat separation of timescales: the environmental dynamics is assumed to be fast compared to the typical evolution timescale of the system of interest. However, nowadays we are able to inspect physical scenarios where the usual Born-Markov approximation breaks down: the interaction between system and environment can be strong, likely leading to non-negligible memory (non-Markovian) effects. In this work, we discuss some instances in which we cannot work in the standard Born-Markov regime. We introduce and analyse some numerical and analytical techniques to characterise and simulate non-standard scenarios. We show that, even in the Markovian regime, the traditional formulation of thermodynamic irreversibility shows flaws and inconsistencies. We thus use phase-space methods to assess the role of initial correlations shared by the two parties of a bipartite harmonic system in the entropy production rate, including non-Markovian effects. Furthermore, we show that certain interactions enable to redraw the boundaries between the system and the environment in an effective manner, resulting in a new picture where the system degrees of freedom are augmented, while the residual environment is rearranged in such a way that the Born-Markov approximation is recovered. This analytical technique, known as reaction coordinate mapping approach, is employed in this work to show that, upon an accurate choice of the parameter regime, a spin-boson model can serve as a quantum analogue simulator of non-Markovian multiphoton Jaynes-Cummings models. These systematic studies shed light on the thermodynamic characterisation of open quantum systems, as well as on their numerical simulation.

•Oct 1, 2026•0 citations
Spectral densities encode essential information that characterises the interaction between a system and its environment in an open-quantum system problem. This information is crucial for determining the system's dynamics. In this work, we leverage the potential of machine learning techniques to reconstruct the features of the environment. Specifically, we show that, given the time evolution of a system observable, an artificial neural network can infer the main features of the spectral density. Firstly, for relevant examples of exactly solvable and weakly-coupled spin-boson models, we demonstrate that the neural network can classify the Ohmicity parameter of the environment as either Ohmic, sub-Ohmic, or super-Ohmic, with high accuracy, effectively distinguishing between different forms of dissipation. Additionally, we extend our approach to a regression task, where the neural network accurately predicts continuous values of the Ohmicity parameter, the coupling strength and the cut-off frequency, providing a comprehensive characterisation of the spectral density. Furthermore, to address scenarios beyond the weak coupling regime, we employ the reaction coordinate mapping. For a dissipative spin-boson model with a structured spectral density comprising one, two, or three Lorentzian peaks, we demonstrate that a neural network can classify the spectral density based on the number of peaks and accurately predict their positions. The methodology developed in this thesis, along with the case studies analysed, demonstrates the effectiveness of machine learning techniques for characterising environments with arbitrary spectral densities across a broad range of coupling regimes.
Abstract Spectral densities encode the relevant information characterizing the system–environment interaction in an open-quantum system problem. Such information is key to determining the system’s dynamics. In this work, we leverage the potential of machine learning techniques to reconstruct the features of the environment. Specifically, we show that the time evolution of a system observable can be used by an artificial neural network to infer the main features of the spectral density. In particular, for relevant examples of spin-boson models, we can classify with high accuracy the Ohmicity parameter of the environment as either Ohmic, sub-Ohmic or super-Ohmic, thereby distinguishing between different forms of dissipation.
Spectral density functions quantify how environmental modes couple to quantum systems and govern their open dynamics. Inferring such frequency-dependent functions from time-domain measurements is an ill-conditioned inverse problem. Here, we use exactly solvable spin-boson models with pure-dephasing and amplitude-damping channels to reconstruct spectral density functions from noisy simulated data. First, we introduce a parameter estimation approach based on machine learning regressors to infer Lorentzian and Ohmic-like spectral density parameters, quantifying robustness to noise. Second, we show that a cosine transform inversion yields a physics-consistent spectral prior estimation, which is refined by a constrained neural network enforcing positivity and correct asymptotic behaviour. Our neural network framework robustly reconstructs structured spectral densities by filtering simulated noisy signals and learning general functional dependencies.
The interaction between a quantum system and its environment can be characterized by the spectral density function: knowing its structure is important for optimizing applications of quantum technologies such as quantum sensing protocols. In this work, we present the first experimental demonstration of a machine learning-based reconstruction of reaction-coordinate spectral density parameters from NV centre Rabi dynamics. Unlike the previous work, we recover all spectral density parameters rather than only the central frequency, and benchmark the performance of the neural network against the Cramér-Rao bound and maximum likelihood estimator. Our results demonstrate that the model predicted by the neural network can reliably reproduce the NV dynamics over the estimation window, and can produce estimates for some parameters with variances comparable to that of maximum likelihood.
We develop machine learning models for the automated characterization of quantum noise spectroscopy for non-Hermitian two-level systems. We use the Random Forest, Support Vector, and Feedforward Neural Network regression algorithms to perform a highly accurate regression of the two-level system-bath coupling strength. High accuracy Ohmicity classification was implemented to provide a complete characterization of the spectral density function. We define a time-averaged trace-distance metric to feed the machine learning algorithms, which, together with numerically exact populations as inputs, produce a highly accurate non-Markovian regression spanning the transition from fast to slow baths and from weak to strong coupling regimes of the interaction. The dynamics database of the non-Hermitian systems has been built up within the independent spin-boson and pure dephasing model.
Theoretical investigations of open quantum systems have uncovered a wide variety of unique dynamical phenomena. For instance, current research in quantum information technology aims to control and utilize time-delayed system-reservoir interactions and phonon-induced dynamical dissipative processes for the design of novel chip-integrated quantum optical devices. This thesis develops and advances multiple theoretical approaches for the accurate and efficient description of open quantum systems, where a high degree of information compression is essential to extract crucial information from the open system degrees of freedom which scale exponentially with the system size. The presented methods range from correlation expansions to second-order perturbative master equations, real-time path integral formulations, numerical realizations of high-dimensional tensor networks and, based on the most recent theoretical developments, machine learning implementations in the form of artificial neural networks. We explore all of these techniques with respect to their compression efficiency, performance and representational limits by applying them to a variety of physical setups and scenarios. Firstly, emerging non-Markovian memory effects in open quantum systems are investigated, e.g., resulting from interactions with a structured phonon environment or time-discrete coherent quantum feedback, leading to information exchange and a time-delayed dynamical interplay between system and reservoir. Examined systems range from solid state p-wave topological superconductors coupled to a structured phonon environment, where a memory-induced stabilization and recovery of topological properties is observed, to semiconductor quantum dot nanostructures exhibiting complete population inversion and unidirectional quantum transport as a result of dissipation-induced non-Markovian system-reservoir interactions, and quantum emitters simultaneously subjected to coherent quantum feedback and a decoherence-inducing structured phonon reservoir, leading to the formation of dynamical dissipative structures and population trapping. Secondly, novel machine learning techniques based on artificial neural networks are investigated, enabling simulations of symmetric open quantum spin-1/2 systems with Markovian dynamics. Combining their potential for parallelization and efficient Hilbert space truncation, they facilitate unmatched degrees of information compression and numerical performance for large systems. In this thesis, we expand the representational limits of the restricted Boltzmann machine neural network architecture by developing novel hybrid sampling strategies for a highly customizable compression of configuration space, rendering accurate and efficient simulations of asymmetric systems feasible. Finally, the applicability of the neural network is extended beyond pure spin-1/2 systems by introducing a neural bit encoding scheme for Fock number states, facilitating high performing calculations of large hybrid open quantum systems with bosonic degrees of freedom.
In this thesis, we discuss aspects of the simulation, characterisation, and control of the dynamics of open quantum systems. The latter are systems governed by quantum mechanical laws and interacting with an environment, which is typically much larger than the system itself. According to the standard approach, one is usually able to perform a suitable average over the environmental degrees of freedom, resulting in an effective description of the main system dynamics, which accounts for the effects of the interaction with the surroundings. In standard scenarios, usually studied within the so-called Born-Markov approximation, the system-environment coupling is weak and such that we can perform a neat separation of timescales: the environmental dynamics is assumed to be fast compared to the typical evolution timescale of the system of interest. However, nowadays we are able to inspect physical scenarios where the usual Born-Markov approximation breaks down: the interaction between system and environment can be strong, likely leading to non-negligible memory (non-Markovian) effects. In this work, we discuss some instances in which we cannot work in the standard Born-Markov regime. We introduce and analyse some numerical and analytical techniques to characterise and simulate non-standard scenarios. We show that, even in the Markovian regime, the traditional formulation of thermodynamic irreversibility shows flaws and inconsistencies. We thus use phase-space methods to assess the role of initial correlations shared by the two parties of a bipartite harmonic system in the entropy production rate, including non-Markovian effects. Furthermore, we show that certain interactions enable to redraw the boundaries between the system and the environment in an effective manner, resulting in a new picture where the system degrees of freedom are augmented, while the residual environment is rearranged in such a way that the Born-Markov approximation is recovered. This analytical technique, known as reaction coordinate mapping approach, is employed in this work to show that, upon an accurate choice of the parameter regime, a spin-boson model can serve as a quantum analogue simulator of non-Markovian multiphoton Jaynes-Cummings models. These systematic studies shed light on the thermodynamic characterisation of open quantum systems, as well as on their numerical simulation.