We study the non-equilibrium dynamics of a pair of qubits made of two-level atoms separated in space with distance r and interacting with one common electromagnetic field but not directly with each other. Our calculation makes a weak coupling assumption, but no Born or Markov approximation. We derived a non-Markovian master equation for the evolution of the reduced density matrix of the two-qubit system after integrating out the electromagnetic field modes. It contains a Markovian part with a Lindblad type operator and a nonMarkovian contribution, the physics of which is the main focus of this study. We use the concurrence function as a measure of quantum entanglement between the two qubits. Two classes of states are studied in detail: Class A is a one parameter family of states which are the superposition of the highest energy |I〉 ≡ |11〉 and lowest energy |O〉 ≡ |00〉 states, υiz, |A〉≡p|I〉+(1−p)|O〉, with 0 ≤ p ≤ 1; and Class B states |B〉 are linear combinations of the symmetric |+〉=12(|01〉+|10〉) and the antisymmetric |−〉=12(|01〉−|10〉) Bell states.
We study the non-equilibrium dynamics of a pair of qubits made of two-level atoms separated in space with distance r and interacting with one common electromagnetic field but not directly with each other. Our calculation makes a weak coupling assumption, but no Born or Markov approximation. We derived a non-Markovian master equation for the evolution of the reduced density matrix of the two-qubit system after integrating out the electromagnetic field modes. It contains a Markovian part with a Lindblad type operator and a nonMarkovian contribution, the physics of which is the main focus of this study. We use the concurrence function as a measure of quantum entanglement between the two qubits. Two classes of states are studied in detail: Class A is a one parameter family of states which are the superposition of the highest energy |I〉 ≡ |11〉 and lowest energy |O〉 ≡ |00〉 states, υiz, |A〉≡p|I〉+(1−p)|O〉, with 0 ≤ p ≤ 1; and Class B states |B〉 are linear combinations of the symmetric |+〉=12(|01〉+|10〉) and the antisymmetric |−〉=12(|01〉−|10〉) Bell states.
We examine the dynamics of bipartite quantum entanglement between a two-level atom and the electromagnetic field. We begin with the Jaynes-Cummings model with a single field mode and examine in detail the exact time evolution of entanglement, including cases where the atomic state is initially mixed and the atomic transition is detuned from resonance. We then explore the effects of other nearby modes by calculating the exact time evolution of entanglement in more complex systems with two, three, and five field modes. For these cases we can obtain exact solutions which include the strong-coupling regime. Finally, we consider the entanglement of a two-level atom with the infinite collection of modes present in the intracavity field of a Fabre-Perot cavity. In contrast to the usual treatment of atom-field interactions with a continuum of modes using the Born-Markov approximation, our treatment in all cases describes the full non-Markovian dynamics of the atomic subsystem under general couplings. Only when an analytic expression for the infinite mode case is desired do we need to make a weak coupling assumption which at late times approximates Markovian dynamics.
We derive the stochastic equations and consider the non-Markovian dynamics of a system of multiple two-level atoms in a common quantum field. We make only the dipole approximation for the atoms and assume weak atom–field interactions. From these assumptions, we use a combination of non-secular open- and closed-system perturbation theory, and we abstain from any additional approximation schemes. These more accurate solutions are necessary to explore several regimes: in particular, near-resonance dynamics and low-temperature behavior. In detuned atomic systems, small variations in the system energy levels engender timescales which, in general, cannot be safely ignored, as would be the case in the rotating-wave approximation (RWA). More problematic are the second-order solutions, which, as has been recently pointed out (Fleming and Cummings 2011 Phys. Rev. E 83 031117), cannot be accurately calculated using any second-order perturbative master equation, such as RWA, Born–Markov, Redfield, etc. The latter problem, which applies to all perturbative open-system master equations, has a profound effect upon calculation of entanglement at low temperatures. We find that even at zero temperature all initial states will undergo finite-time disentanglement (sometimes termed ‘sudden death’), in contrast to the previous work. We also use our solution, without invoking the RWA, to characterize the necessary conditions for Dicke subradiance at finite temperature. We find that the sub-radiant states fall into two categories at finite temperature: one that is temperature independent and one that acquires temperature dependence. With the RWA, there is no temperature dependence in any case.
We study the non-Markovian dynamics of a qubit made up of a two-level atom interacting with an electromagnetic field (EMF) initially at finite temperature. Unlike most earlier studies where the bath is assumed to be fixed, we study the complete evolution of the combined qubit-EMF system, thus allowing for the coherent backaction from the bath on the qubit and the qubit on the bath in a self-consistent manner. In this way we can see the development of quantum correlations and entanglement between the system and its environment, and how that affects the decoherence and relaxation of the system. We find nonexponential decay for both the diagonal and nondiagonal matrix elements of the qubit's reduced density matrix in the pointer basis. The former shows the qubit relaxing to thermal equilibrium with the bath, while the latter shows the decoherence rate beginning at the usually predicted thermal rate, but changing to the zero-temperature value as the qubit and bath become entangled. The decoherence and relaxation rates are comparable, as in the zero-temperature case. On the entanglement of a qubit with the EMF we calculated the fidelity and the von Neumann entropy, which is a measure of the purity of the density matrix. The present more accurate non-Markovian calculations predict lower loss of fidelity and purity as compared with the Markovian results. Generally speaking, with the inclusion of quantum correlations between the qubit and its environment, the non-Markovian processes tend to slow down the drive of the system to equilibrium, prolonging the decoherence and better preserving the fidelity and purity of the system.
Non-Markovian dynamics of two interacting two-level qubits coupled to a bosonic bath was previously studied using the quantum-state-diffusion (QSD) equation, where a stochastic state is used to describe the system. In this study, we provide another perspective on this system by deriving the analytic form of the master equation, which describes the system with a reduced density matrix. Then, we validate the master equation by examining entanglement generation and state purity. In addition, with the master equation, we observe the effects from first-order noise and notice that a good asymptotic approximation to the master equation can be made by neglecting the first-order noise.
We study the entanglement dynamics of multi-qubit systems coupled to a common dissipative environment, focusing on systems with one or two initially excited qubits. Using the Lindblad master equation, we derive the time evolution of the density matrix and analyze the entanglement between qubit pairs via the concurrence measure. The solution method involves applying the Lindblad super-operator to the initial density matrix, generating a subspace of non-duplicate states. We extend our analysis to n-qubit systems, including three-qubit and four-qubit configurations, and explore the effects of thermal noise on entanglement dynamics. Our results demonstrate how initial conditions, system size, and environmental interactions shape entanglement, providing valuable insights for quantum information processing applications.
Non-Markovian dynamics is studied for two interacting qubits strongly coupled to a dissipative bosonic environment. We derive a non-Markovian quantum-state-diffusion (QSD) equation for the coupled two-qubit system without any approximations, and in particular, without the Markov approximation. As an application and illustration of our derived time-local QSD equation, we investigate the temporal behavior of quantum coherence dynamics. In particular, we find a strongly non-Markovian regime where entanglement generation is significantly modulated by the environmental memory. Additionally, we study residual entanglement in the steady state by analyzing the steady-state solution of the QSD equation. Finally, we discuss an approximate QSD equation.