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arXiv:nlin/0309053 · Physical Review Letters

Faster Than Lyapunov Decays of the Classical Loschmidt Echo

Gregor Veble, Tomaž Prosen

Published Jan 23, 2004• 35 citations
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Abstract

We show that in the classical interaction picture the echo dynamics, namely, the composition of perturbed forward and unperturbed backward Hamiltonian evolution, can be treated as a time-dependent Hamiltonian system. For strongly chaotic (Anosov) systems we derive a cascade of exponential decays for the classical Loschmidt echo, starting with the leading Lyapunov exponent, followed by a sum of the two largest exponents, etc. In the loxodromic case a decay starts with the rate given as twice the largest Lyapunov exponent. For a class of perturbations of symplectic maps the echo dynamics exhibits a drift resulting in a superexponential decay of the Loschmidt echo.

DOI
10.1103/physrevlett.92.034101

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We show that in the classical interaction picture the echo dynamics, namely, the composition of perturbed forward and unperturbed backward Hamiltonian evolution, can be treated as a time-dependent Hamiltonian system. For strongly chaotic (Anosov) systems we derive a cascade of exponential decays for the classical Loschmidt echo, starting with the leading Lyapunov exponent, followed by a sum of the two largest exponents, etc. In the loxodromic case a decay starts with the rate given as twice the largest Lyapunov exponent. For a class of perturbations of symplectic maps the echo dynamics exhibits a drift resulting in a superexponential decay of the Loschmidt echo.
We address the time decay of the Loschmidt echo, measuring the sensitivity of quantum dynamics to small Hamiltonian perturbations, in one-dimensional integrable systems. Using a semiclassical analysis, we show that the Loschmidt echo may exhibit a well-pronounced regime of exponential decay, similar to the one typically observed in quantum systems whose dynamics is chaotic in the classical limit. We derive an explicit formula for the exponential decay rate in terms of the spectral properties of the unperturbed and perturbed Hamilton operators and the initial state. In particular, we show that the decay rate, unlike in the case of the chaotic dynamics, is directly proportional to the strength of the Hamiltonian perturbation. Finally, we compare our analytical predictions against the results of a numerical computation of the Loschmidt echo for a quantum particle moving inside a one-dimensional box with Dirichlet-Robin boundary conditions, and find the two in good agreement.
The Loschmidt echo (LE) is a measure of the stability and reversibility of quantum evolution under perturbations of the Hamiltonian. One of the expected and most relevant characteristics of this quantity for chaotic systems is an exponential decay with a perturbation-independent decay rate given by the classical Lyapunov exponent. However, a non-uniform decay—instead of the Lyapunov regime—has been reported in several systems. In this work, we find an analytical semiclassical expression for the averaged fidelity amplitude that can be directly related to the anomalous—unexpected—behaviour of the LE.
We study the decay rate of the Loschmidt echo or fidelity in a chaotic system under a time-dependent perturbation V(q,t)V(\mathbf{q},t)V(q,t) with typical strength $\ensuremath{\hbar}∕{\ensuremath{\tau}}_{V}$. The perturbation represents the action of an uncontrolled environment interacting with the system, and is characterized by a correlation length ${\ensuremath{\xi}}_{0}$ and a correlation time ${\ensuremath{\tau}}_{0}$. For small perturbation strengths or rapid fluctuating perturbations, the Loschmidt echo decays exponentially with a rate predicted by the Fermi ``golden rule,'' $1∕\stackrel{\ifmmode \tilde{}\else \~{}\fi{}}{\ensuremath{\tau}}={\ensuremath{\tau}}_{c}∕{\ensuremath{\tau}}_{V}^{2}$, where ${\ensuremath{\tau}}_{c}\ensuremath{\sim}\mathrm{min}[{\ensuremath{\tau}}_{0},{\ensuremath{\xi}}_{0}∕v]$ and vvv is the typical particle velocity. Whenever the rate $1∕\stackrel{\ifmmode \tilde{}\else \~{}\fi{}}{\ensuremath{\tau}}$ is larger than the Lyapunov exponent of the system, a perturbation independent Lyapunov decay regime arises. We also find that by speeding up the fluctuations (while keeping the perturbation strength fixed) the fidelity decay becomes slower, and hence one can protect the system against decoherence.
We study the decoherence of a one-particle system, whose classical correspondent is chaotic, when it evolves coupled to a weak quenched environment. This is done by analytical evaluation of the Loschmidt echo (i.e., the revival of a localized density excitation upon reversal of its time evolution), in the presence of the perturbation. We predict an exponential decay for the Loschmidt echo with a (decoherence) rate which is asymptotically given by the mean Lyapunov exponent of the classical system, and therefore independent of the perturbation strength, within a given range of strengths. Our results are consistent with recent experiments of polarization echoes in nuclear magnetic resonance and numerical simulations.
The overlap of two wave packets evolving in time with slightly different Hamiltonians decays exponentially approximate to e(-gammat), for perturbation strengths U greater than the level spacing Delta. We present numerical evidence for a dynamical system that the decay rate gamma is given by the smallest of the Lyapunov exponent lambda of the classical chaotic dynamics and the level broadening U(2)/Delta that follows from the golden rule of quantum mechanics. This implies the range of validity U > the square root of [lambdaDelta] for the perturbation-strength independent decay rate discovered by Jalabert and Pastawski [Phys. Rev. Lett. 86, 2490 (2001)].
The Loschmidt echo (LE) is a measure of the sensitivity of quantum mechanics to perturbations in the evolution operator. It is defined as the overlap of two wave functions evolved from the same initial state but with slightly different Hamiltonians. Thus, it also serves as a quantification of irreversibility in quantum mechanics. In this thesis the LE is studied in systems that have a classical counterpart with dynamical instability, that is, classically chaotic. An analytical treatment that makes use of the semiclassical approximation is presented. It is shown that, under certain regime of the parameters, the LE decays exponentially. Furthermore, for strong enough perturbations, the decay rate is given by the Lyapunov exponent of the classical system. Some particularly interesting examples are given. The analytical results are supported by thorough numerical studies. In addition, some regimes not accessible to the theory are explored, showing that the LE and its Lyapunov regime present the same form of universality ascribed to classical chaos. In a sense, this is evidence that the LE is a robust temporal signature of chaos in the quantum realm. Finally, the relation between the LE and the quantum to classical transition is explored, in particular with the theory of decoherence. Using two different approaches, a semiclassical approximation to Wigner functions and a master equation for the LE, it is shown that the decoherence rate and the decay rate of the LE are equal. The relationship between these quantities results mutually beneficial, in terms of the broader resources of decoherence theory and of the possible experimental realization of the LE.